We are flying into Sacramento March 16th or 17th and heading to South Lake Tahoe. Almost right to the Stateline.

I have seen different posts on the drive from Sacramento to the North Shore. How is it to the South Shore? Do we go over mountains. I am trying to see if we should AVOID landing in Sacrramento to where we would have to drive at night.

I know the weather can be either good or lots of snow.

Let me know your thoughts?

Also, anyone used a rental car agency that has lots of 4 wheel drives/good deals from the Sacramento airport??

Thanks.

To get to the South Shore, you'll be driving US-50. Once you get to Placerville, you'll be on a mostly 2-lane highway with the occasional passing lane. 50 is also more susceptible to rockslides and road closure.

You do go over the mountains, and, for me, I feel it more because I'm not driving a 3-5 lane interstate highway.

It's about a 2 hour drive from downtown Sac depending on the day and time. If you can arrive in Sac in the early a.m. on the 16th and start up the hill by 11 a.m., you'll have an easier drive. By about 4 p.m. on Friday, the highway starts to fill up with weekend skiers.

I'm not sure where you're coming from, but in March there can be a fair amount of black ice on the roads, so if you're not used to driving in those conditions, definitely drive up the hill during daylight hours.

On your trip home, remember that Sunday afternoon/evening will be packed coming down the mountain. You don't indicate when you're leaving, but you will want to try to not go at that time.

No matter where you fly into you will have to go over mountains to get into Tahoe - no getting around it.

Now I'm afraid "By about 4 p.m. on Friday, the highway starts to fill up with weekend skiers." is very out of date. The roads fill up from about noon on fridays, and not just during ski season. By 4 p.m. it will be bumper to bumper for a very looooong distance.

So if you can get a flight that gets you out of town by noon or 1 p.m. at the VERY latest you will be OK. That isn't getting to the rental counter by then - but in the car and on the way.

If your flight choices land later - you would be MUCH better off waiting until Sat. Any time on Sat the traffic will be 10000% better than Friday afternoon.

As for where to rent your car - all the majors are at SMF so just pick whichever one you prefer. One thing - it might be lovely weather, or it might be snowy and you won't know until a day or two ahead. But if it is a REALLY heavy snow you would need chains even on a 4wd (if the road is open at all) and most rental agencies do not allow chains on their cars.

My advice is to rent a 4wd - that is probably all you'll need. But if a heavy storm hits, have a plan B to stick around Sacramento for a day or 2 to let the weather clear a bit.

thanks..this is exactly what I need. I have a choice of flying from Dallas Texas on Friday the 16th, but it would be later in the day arriving after 7pm. It sounds like I would be better to just fly in on Sat. and we would arrive at 11:00am. then we should be able to get on the road by 12:00 by the time we get the bags and car....

we will be leaving on a wednesday. The flight would be around 2:00pm back to Dallas.

So the only plan B since rental agencies don't allow the chains is to stay in Sacramento huh?? Do you know if there is any other way to get to South Tahoe and then we could rent a car in South Tahoe. Like a shuttle or something that would be more prepared for the weather.

Rent a car that has 4WD. Then you won't need chains.

Should have said that with 4WD you won't need chains 90% of the time except as janis said during an extremely heavy snowfall.

You might check into flying into Reno if available..and of course cost being a factor. If the weather is OK, it's about an hour and a half drive to South Shore..probably two hours if commute time..lots of people work in Reno and live in Carson City and you would go through Carson City to get to South Shore. If it's late you could spend the night in Reno or drive to Carson City and spend the night. South Shore is only about 20-25 miles from Carson City. You do go over Spooner Summit which is about the 7200 foot level so if it's snowing it may not be snowing down in the valley but will probably be snowing over the summit so 4 wheel drive, again would be a good idea. Just an idea.

Yeah,,,I tried Reno, but it was more..and I could use airmiles into Sacramento, but Reno didn't have anything available for me to use airmiles.

Thanks again for all the help!!!

Just a reminder, chains will help you go, they won't help you stop! So if the road is icy chains alone won't prevent an accident. Spoken as one who totalled a four wheel drive SUV in a ten mile an hour crash last year.....

Sorry, I meant 4WD alone won't prevent an accident. Those in the know put on chains if the road is icy even if they have 4WD.

Yes, you go over very tall mountains. Sacramento is basically sea level. Echo Summit (US50) is over 7,300 ft, while Donner Pass (I-80) is just over 7,000. You climed that much in under 40 miles.

The Sierra Nevada blocked the moisture coming in from the west and dumped it all on the west side of the range. Snow is measured in feet there often. And mid-March is still winter.

Seriously rethink your plan.

"Seriously rethink your plan."

Uh - why?? Thousands (quite literally) of folks drive successfully up to Tahoe every weekend year round. The only caveat is to check and make sure a major storm isn't coming in - and they will know that pretty much 4 or 5 days (actually a week or more) in advance since weather forecasting on the West coast is pretty easy. There are certain weather patterns - and if a cold/wet storm is forming up in the Pacific it will be on all the weather sites.

That is the only reason I suggested having a plan B.

Why? Because the OP isn't just living in Sacramento and going to Tahoe for a weekend ski-trip, and can go or not go.

The OP seems to have some place in South Lake Tahoe booked or something, and is wondering about getting award tickets to Sacramento. Well, I'd say that it's just not smart planning for a trip for this itinerary at that time of the year.

We haven't had a lot of storms this year, at least not yet. There one coming toward the end of the week so they say. At any rate, no one can predict what the next three months will be like, but so far the storms are mostly splitting..going around us actually. So, if you decide to come, hope things will be good weather wise for you because being on that hill, especially HW 50 in a snow storm is just no fun at all. Been there, done that, and it really sucks.

rkkwan - you are correct. coming from Dallas TX and am spending a 5th anniversary there.

Interesting comments tho...as other places on Fodors someone asked about going in March and the comments were very good. Great time to come.

AGREE --- anything can happen and we could be snowed out. The other string just didn't mention anything about changing plans. I will just hope for the best!

Tahoe is a wonderland in the Spring - snow or no snow. True - if you were the Donner Party - not so much fun. But the likelihood of a road closing storm is not very high. And tahoe hotels are usually very forgiving about cancelled bookings due to weather. So in the tiny eventuality there is a road closing storm - there are some fantastic restaurants in Sacramento and enough to keep you interested for a day or two.

I would definitely NOT change my plans. But that is just me and I know the roads . . . . .

I wouldn't change plans either - I love Lake Tahoe in the spring. I would have a plan B in case of a road closure though. Hanging out in Sacramento for an extra day is a good idea. You could also head to the Gold Country for a day or two while you wait out the storm and the roads are plowed. Unless it is a heck of a storm, snow in the Gold Country should be minimal if there is snow at all.

I'd do a little research ahead of time so as to have some things in mind if you have to alter your plans a little bit to accomodate a storm.

got the plane tickets yesterday....so no changing plans. Thanks for the ideas for plan B.

I agree that Tahoe is a must see at any time of the year, but if the roads are closed due to extreme weather you may want to drive to Napa or Sonoma (about a 2hr drive). Web site for CA road conditions - http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/roadinfo/

Have a great trip and here's hoping you have clear skies and roads all the way.