I’m not sure what it is about Thanksgiving, but it seems that nearly every year we have some kind of winter storm right around this time, and this year only serves to prove the point. A very cold winter storm is dropping down out of the Gulf of Alaska, kicking off a Winter Storm Warning for the mountains and a Wind Advisory for the valleys. Snow levels will start at about 5,500’ mid-day Tuesday and drop to well below the valley floors elevation by Tuesday night. Ahead of the precipitation, strong winds will kick up early Tuesday morning, with valley gusts as high as 70 mph in the wind-prone areas, and ridgetop gusts in the triple digit range. The initial wave of precipitation Tuesday morning will likely be focused in the mountains due to rain shadowing in the valleys. A secondary impulse will drop through late Tuesday night into Wednesday morning giving us our best chance of valley snow, with a few inches possible. The cold air (highs will hover around the freezing mark Wednesday through the weekend) also creates a possibility for a return of some lake effect snow near Tahoe and Pyramid Lake.