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Heavy Snow, Rain and Strong Winds Return to the West (RECAP) | The Weather Channel
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Regional Forecasts

Heavy Snow, Rain and Strong Winds Return to the West (RECAP)

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The recent dry streak of weather that gave the West an early taste of summer quickly came to an end. As the jet stream returned southward, a pair of storm systems brought rain and mountain snow back to an area that desperately needs the precipitation. In addition to precipitation, there was also an increase in strong winds across the region.

Wind gusts on Wednesday reached as high as 62 mph at Susanville Airport in Lassen County, California. The National Weather Service at Reno, Nevada measured a 60 mph wind gust Wednesday afternoon. The winds were strong enough to knock down some trees and power lines across the region.

Late Thursday morning Ogden Peak in Utah measured a wind gust of 106 mph. In the Salt Lake City metro area on Thursday morning, a scaffolding collapsed and trees were downed due to strong wind gusts.

Strong winds pushed as far east as the Rockies, where a wind gust to 62 mph was reported near Woody Creek, Colorado Thursday afternoon.

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The storms brought an end to a 13-day rainless streak to locations such as Sacramento and Los Angeles.

Although beneficial, the relatively light rainfall amounts have done little to alleviate the ongoing drought across the state. 

MORE ON WEATHER.COM: Huge Waves Slam California

Over the weekend, surfers took advantage of the massive swells influenced by El Niño-influenced storms in California. “The waves themselves were generated by a series of strong low-pressure systems farther north in the North Pacific,” said weather.com senior digital meteorologist Nick Wiltgen. “Those systems created a large swatch of strong westerly winds that whipped up the seas and eventually sent high surf crashing onto the shores of California.” Many of these surfers were found at Mavericks, a famous surf spot located along the San Mateo County coast in California. “These are some of the biggest waves I‘ve seen at Mavericks in three years, and yesterday I caught what was probably a 25-feet wave Travis Payne, 31, told The Guardian. Mavericks may expect more out-of-town surfers if the effects of El Niño continues to generate strong low-pressure systems in the Pacific. Mavericks is known to have some of the biggest waves, especially in the winter. Titans of Mavericks, an invitation-only surfing contest is held there every year and only 24 of the best big wave surfing professionals are allowed to compete.
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Over the weekend, surfers took advantage of the massive swells influenced by El Niño-influenced storms in California. “The waves themselves were generated by a series of strong low-pressure systems farther north in the North Pacific,” said weather.com senior digital meteorologist Nick Wiltgen. “Those systems created a large swatch of strong westerly winds that whipped up the seas and eventually sent high surf crashing onto the shores of California.” Many of these surfers were found at Mavericks, a famous surf spot located along the San Mateo County coast in California. “These are some of the biggest waves I‘ve seen at Mavericks in three years, and yesterday I caught what was probably a 25-feet wave Travis Payne, 31, told The Guardian. Mavericks may expect more out-of-town surfers if the effects of El Niño continues to generate strong low-pressure systems in the Pacific. Mavericks is known to have some of the biggest waves, especially in the winter. Titans of Mavericks, an invitation-only surfing contest is held there every year and only 24 of the best big wave surfing professionals are allowed to compete.
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