Bay Area showers, Sierra snow forecast

Two separate weather systems are forecast to sweep across the region this week, bringing rain to the Bay Area and snow to the Sierra, forecasters said Sunday.

By Monday night, a quarter-inch to a halfinch of rain is expected to fall over the area, with the highest amounts in the North Bay, said Suzanne Sims, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Monterey.

A second storm is expected to arrive by midweek, Sims said, bringing more rain on Wednesday and Thursday. Sims said the storm could stretch as far south as Big Sur, with showers still predicted in the North Bay and San Francisco.

Temperatures are expected to drop as the rain moves in, with highs dipping to the 50s and 60s throughout the Bay Area. And Sims said to expect more rainy days.

“We’re just getting started,” she said. “We’re getting close to Thanksgiving. It’s just that time of year.”

In the Sierra, forecasters are expecting 12 inches of snow or more for Wednesday and Thursday in the higher elevations.

Shane Snyder, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Reno, said drivers should expect poor conditions and longer travel times.

“It’s a moderate system, but it’s still going to be a foot or 18 inches of snow, and that’s going to cause major travel headaches,” Snyder said.