Substantial snow expected this weekend

Snow ribbons in Carson City on Dec. 11. Photo/Rob Bozin

A winter storm warning has been issued for Lake Tahoe starting at 10 tonight and lasting to 4am Sunday.

Sierra-at-Tahoe base area -- 7,300 feet, 2pm Dec. 11. Photo/Provided

The National Weather Service is saying the heaviest snow will be Saturday night when 2 to 3 inches could fall in an hour at Lake Tahoe, with an inch an hour in the valleys of Northern Nevada.

Highs this weekend at the lake are expected to be right around freezing.

While it’s been snowing off and on Friday at the lake, the resorts have been accumulating the white stuff.

“It’s been snowing hard all day up here at the resort and we have 3-5 inches on the ground, with another 3 feet possible by the end of the weekend,” Kirstin Cattell of Sierra-at-Tahoe said of conditions at 2pm.

The incoming storm has forced Zephyr Cove to cancel its 10am snowmobile tour on Dec. 12.