Awoke to the sound of rain this morning.

When it rains in the summer in Tahoe I love it. When it rains in the winter in Tahoe, I’ve come to accept it. The bungalow we rent is at 5850′ feet. It is low enough in elevation that when warm storms come in, they manifest themselves as rain. Somewhere above us it is snowing. Judging from how hard it is raining here, it is dumping big time up there.

I used to get upset when it rained around the house. Nowadays I look for the positive aspects of rain at home. Rain at home means I don’t have to blow the driveway. It means the snowpack is being stabilized, making future travel in the backcountry potentially, on average, safer. And it means the roads will be easier to travel since few folks in Truckee lose control of their cars in the rain, but tons of ’em do with snow. And it means I won’t be tempted to play hooky and can get some work done in preparation for when it does get colder so I’ll be free to play.

According to Snow-Forecast, 4-10 inches are forecast above 8000 feet. If we’re lucky, snowline will drop below the 7,000-foot level. Either way, conditions should be good in the Mt. Rose, South Lake Tahoe, and Carson Pass areas tomorrow. Maybe even Truckee. I’m crossing my fingers.

Ski you out there.