Current Conditions on Donner Summit

Weather Report

Current Conditions in
Soda Springs, California

Soda Springs is at an elevation of 6,800 feet and is 3 miles west of Donner Summit. Most of the major ski resorts in the Donner Summit area are within a couple of miles of Soda Springs, making weather reports from there a good indication of conditions at the ski resorts and over the summit.

For more detailed snow reports from the ski resorts, see the links below to the individual resorts and their webcams.

Interstate 80 Road Conditions

Interstate 80 over Donner Summit is open year-round, but conditions on the pass in the winter often cause temporary closures. For this reason, during the winter it is always prudent to check with CalTrans before setting out.

Road Condition Information

These are among the best contacts for road conditions:

• Caltrans current road conditions: 1-800.427.7623
• CalTrans Road Information
• Caltrans QuickMap - a very useful tool for locating chain controls and much more
• Caltrans Social Media Pick #3 for Donner Summit. Twitter, Facebook, etc.
• Caltrans Chain Controls and Chain Installations
• SigAlert - Donner Summit
• Caltrans mobile

Snow Chain Designations

Requirement One (R1): Chains or snow tread tires required. Snow tires must have a tread depth of 6/32" with a "M & S" imprint on the tire's sidewall.
Requirement Two (R2): Chains required on all vehicles except four-wheel drives or all-wheel drives with snow tread tires on all four wheels. (NOTE: four-wheel and all-wheel drive vehicles must carry traction devices in chain control areas)
Requirement Three (R3): Chains are required on all vehicles, no exceptions.