Snow brings fun for some, nerves for others traveling on I-80
NYACK - The Sierra storm that moved through brought 50 to 60-mile-an-hour gusts near Donner Pass, with blizzard conditions and zero visibility during the height of the storm and an I-80 closure at the Nevada State Line.
A few flakes fell Saturday night, but it was the drop in temperature that was behind the warnings to drivers to stay off potentially icy mountain roads.
"It has been a little scary, a lot of snow on the road. It wasn't what we expected," Jennifer Toya said.
Chain controls are in place Saturday night, even though the worst of it is over.
"My experience coming up here, there was a lot of snow, maybe three or four accidents," said Bryan Hampton.
Saturday afternoon, raindrops froze onto snowflakes, sending graupel down on drivers and not just snow.
There were multiple accidents and spinouts reported.
"We were trying to make it to Tahoe, Donner, but we underestimated how long it would take to get here under these snowy conditions," Hampton said.
Those very same conditions that piled snow on cars gave little ones a chance to play.
"This is like a once-year thing," Olivia said. "I just like walking around, exploring."
A day of fun after snow plows cleared slick and snow-covered highways.
"It was a little bit nerve-wracking, but the road conditions [were] pretty good," a driver said.
"Very slow, very slow, very cautious. I'm not in a rush," said one driver heading to Reno.
Typically, on nights when I-80 is closed, you'll see multiple cars in the Nyack rest stop lot, preparing to wait it out or stay the night somewhere else, but that's not the case Saturday night.