Updated Nov. 21, 2019 8:33 AM
Following the storm that has brought welcome rain to portions of California this week, another weather system is expected to slowly travel across much of the state just in time for the busy travel days leading up to Thanksgiving.
This next storm threatens to bring rain and mountain snow to much of California, including places like San Francisco and Sacramento, places that were largely spared by this week's rain.
While the rain will continue to help wind down the fire season across the state, the combination of the rain along with mountain snow and gusty winds will cause travel concerns.
The storm will start to spread some rain along the Northern California coast late in the day on Tuesday into Tuesday night. Some of the rain will be locally heavy, and the potent storm will also have the potential to bring a brief period of gusty winds in many areas.
Heavy downpours could lead to localized flooding and even a few mudslides in burn scar areas that have been impacted by wildfires recently. Roads can also be slippery in these areas at the onset as the lack of rain in the past couple of months has allowed oil to build up on the pavement.
Even though the storm will be moving across Northern California, a strong onshore flow of moisture from the southwest will bring the potential for rain at times down to Los Angeles and San Diego.
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Across Southern California, the most likely time to see rain will be during the day on Wednesday. As the storm helps to pull down colder air, some of the showers could contain small hail, especially across Northern California.
The colder air diving down will also mean that snow will be a major concern for travelers trying to get through some of the passes.
Snow levels are forecast to drop to around 5,000 feet and perhaps even lower, which will lead to accumulating snow at Donner Pass along Interstate 80. There is the potential for around a foot or more of snow at the pass from this storm.
If the cold air really drills deep down into California, it's not of the question that some wet snow could mix in at Tejon Pass in Los Angeles County.
Showers will linger into Thanksgiving Day across much of California. While there may be a few steadier periods of rain in southern parts of the state, it should be a drier day overall.
More than 55 million travelers have plans to venture at least 50 miles away from home from the Friday before Thanksgiving to the Sunday after Thanksgiving, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA). The holiday travel volume is expected to be second-highest behind 2005 since tracking began in 2000, AAA said.
AAA estimates that the worst time to travel in San Francisco on Wednesday will be between 2:00 and 4:00 in the afternoon, with the worst time in the Los Angeles metro area expected to be between 5:00 and 7:00 in the evening. Traffic in both areas are expected to be three to four times higher than an average day.
After the midweek storm moves out, another storm system is expected to move into California heading into next weekend, which could potentially impact Black Friday shopping as well as slow travelers that are heading back home.
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