Midpeninsula residents woke up last Thursday, Feb. 23, to the rare sight of local hilltops decorated with a dusting of snow, as a cold winter storm moved through the Bay Area.

The wintery weather continued through last weekend, with rain at lower elevations and snow in the mountains. In Palo Alto, upper Page Mill road was closed to traffic more than once due to snow in the road between Moody Road and Skyline Boulevard.

Adventurous residents bundled up and brought their snow gear to local open space areas to take in the unusual sight.

Alton Hartzell, 13, of Portola Valley managed to do a little skiing at the Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve on Feb. 23. Eleanor Raab took photos of a winter wonderland at Windy Hill Open Space Preserve in Portola Valley and Alice's Restaurant in Woodside, with snow coating rooftops, trees and parking lots.

More than a foot of snow fell Friday, Feb. 24, in some parts of the Bay Area, the first sizable amount of snow in the region in more than a decade, according to the National Weather Service.

About 14 inches of snow were reported on Mount Hamilton east of San Jose as of 2 p.m. Feb. 24, the highest amount in the region, while 11 inches were reported in the Los Gatos area. In the North Bay, 9 inches fell in Calistoga and 8 inches in Angwin. In San Mateo County, about 6 inches fell in the Portola Valley area and 3 inches fell in the Orinda area of the East Bay.

Weather service meteorologist Brooke Bingaman said the last notable day of snowfall in the Bay Area came in February 2011. That day saw more snow at lower elevations, while last Friday's snow accumulated more at higher elevations, she said.

State Highway 17 between San Jose and Santa Cruz, state Highway 29 in Napa County and state Highway 128 in Sonoma County were among the highways shut down because of the winter weather.

Storm-related impacts continued to affect Bay Area traffic and BART on Monday afternoon, Feb. 27, with some roads flooded by heavy rains or closed due to snow.

El Camino Real in Palo Alto was closed in both directions due to flooding at the University Avenue underpass, police said about 12:30 p.m. on Feb. 27. Previously one lane was open in each direction.

More rain is on the way this weekend, with the National Weather Service forecasting gusty winds, rain and daytime high temperatures hovering around 50 degrees Saturday and Sunday, March 4 and 5.