YOSEMITE, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - Since arriving at Yosemite's Tuolumne Meadows in the past week, park rangers announced there was no new snow report - an incident they say happened because of strong northeast winds. On Thursday, rangers announced this was because of the atypical winds that were the driving force of this week's weather. The Santa Ana winds, the same that drove the wildfires in the Los Angeles area, were a part of the same weather pattern that produced these strong northeast winds in the Sierra Nevada. According to park rangers, these sustained high winds can and have stripped loose surface snow, in places, all the way to bare ground, including from slopes that typically hold the deepest wind-loaded snow. A remote weather station on the Sierra Crest near Mammoth Mountain recorded a peak gust of 135 mph on Jan. 7. According to rangers, the Tioga Road is 100% snow-covered in Yosemite with snow depth averaging between 2 and 4 feet. Rangers add above 8,000 feet, skis, snowshoes, split boards, and/or traction devices are advised for safe travel in Yosemite wilderness, where only non-mechanized travel is allowed. For more information on Yosemite's snow conditions, click here.