Advisory Archive
In case you were holed up in a windowless room, here’s what happened with the weather yesterday—it was sunny. Expect the same today, and again tomorrow. Ridgetop winds have been blowing westerly at 10-20 mph with the Bridger Mountains getting 20-30 mph. Temperatures are in the single digits but will rise into the high 20s today. Our next shot of snowfall appears to be late Saturday night, so don’t fret that winter is over.
Today is a good one to call in sick with powder fever. Yesterday’s storm dropped 16 inches of cold smoke in the Bridger Range, 12 inches near West Yellowstone, 8 inches near Cooke City, and 4-6 inches near Big Sky. At Bridger Bowl very little wind accompanied this snow while other areas experienced strong winds before they calmed late last night. This morning light winds were blowing 5-10 mph from the southwest except in the Bridgers where they shifted to the east. Temperatures range from a few degrees below zero F to the north to a few degrees above zero F to the south.
Today winds will remain light and temperatures will climb to near 10 degrees F. Mostly cloudy skies will bring light snow mostly near West Yellowstone and Cooke City where 4-6 inches will accumulate by Tuesday morning while the rest of the area will get 1-2 inches. Don’t despair because more snow should fall during the day on Tuesday.
Yesterday was clear and sunny, and no snow fell overnight but started this morning and 6 inches have already fallen at Bridger Bowl. At 4 a.m. mountain temperatures were near 10 degrees F and strong southerly winds were blowing 15-30 mph. These winds have not been confined to ridgetops and have been blowing at all elevations. With an approaching arctic cold front temperatures should stay near 10 degrees F. Winds will remain strong at 20-25 mph shifting to the southwest and slowly decreasing later this evening. The storm today keeps looking better for snowfall. By tomorrow morning 4-6 inches of snow will accumulate over most of the area, though heavier snowfall may occur if this storm continues to develop.
Yesterday an additional 2-4 inches fell in the northern half of the advisory area and 3-5 inches fell in the southern half. This morning under clear skies temperatures were in the single digits F and winds were blowing 10-20 mph from the west. In the Bridger Range winds increased overnight up to 30 mph at all elevations. Today’s weather will be spectacular with mostly sunny skies and temperatures near 20 degrees F. Winds will remain strong and blow 20-25 mph from the west. Clouds will build late this afternoon and 1-2 inches of snow will fall by tomorrow morning with the best chance for snow occuring near West Yellowstone.
We’ve had a bit of a break in snowfall since yesterday morning. Overnight only the southern Madison Range and the mountains around Cooke City and West Yellowstone picked up snow, receiving anywhere from 2 to 4 inches. Storm totals from Wednesday through Thursday morning are impressive, with mountain locations picking up 1.5 to 2.5 feet of new snow containing from 1 to 2.5 inches of snow water equivalent. Winds have also been a big part of the equation. Ridgetop winds have been 20 to 30 mph, while our weather instrumentation is also showing strong winds at lower elevation locations yesterday and through last night. Today we’ve got another band of moisture moving through. Most of the storm energy is west and south of us, but we should still receive snow. Snow is just starting this morning, and I’m expecting it to end by late-afternoon. Our northern areas should pick up 3 to 6 inches of new snow, while southern areas will get anywhere from 6 to 10 inches. Winds should decrease from yesterday, but will still be about 10 to 20 mph on the ridges.
The weather station reports took a bit of deciphering this morning to separate out the rain and snowfall. Since early yesterday morning five inches of snow fell in the Bridger Range while one inch dropped around Big Sky and other northern areas. Six inches are in the mountains outside West Yellowstone and ten new inches are in Cooke City. Wind speeds have calmed to 10-20 mph from the southwest with temperatures in the low to mid 20s. Winds will pick up this afternoon as a few more disturbances roll through and drop snow. I expect one to three inches in the north and almost eight inches in the southern mountains by morning.
The mountains around West Yellowstone picked up an inch of snow last night. Under cloudy skies temperatures are unseasonably warm with readings of 30 degrees at 9,000 feet and 41 degrees at the bank thermometer I see out my office window. Today will remain warm with mountain temperatures reaching the high thirties as strong winds continue to blow from the southwest at 20-30 mph. A moist flow will keep skies mostly cloudy with a quick shot of precipitation this morning and again later this afternoon. It’s already raining in Bozeman. Yuk. Luckily, higher elevations are colder and should get 1-3 inches of snow by tomorrow morning.
The ridge responsible for yesterday’s warm sunny weather is finally showing signs it will depart the area and allow moisture to enter. This morning at 4 a.m. mountain temperatures were hovering on either side of freezing and winds were 10-30 mph from the southwest. This southwest flow will bring more warm air with high temperatures near 40 degrees F and winds will continue blowing 10-30 mph. Skies will become more cloudy throughout the day with snowfall beginning this evening. Most of this moisture will be near the mountains around West Yellowstone where 2-4 inches of snow will fall by tomorrow morning. The rest of the area may receive an inch. Fortunately colder temperatures and more snow looks promising later this week.
Yesterday was warm and sunny and a great day to be in the mountains. Winds increased overnight mostly near Big Sky and were blowing 15-25 mph gusting into the 40s from the southwest and west this morning. Under cloudy skies temperatures remained mild and were in the mid 20s F. Mostly cloudy skies will continue today as moisture streams into the area from the southwest with warm air. Temperatures will be in the mid 30s F and winds will blow 20-30 mph from the southwest and west. No snow will accumulate today or this evening; however, Monday evening has a good chance for accumulating snowfall.
Yesterday morning the Bridger Range and northern Gallatin Range received a few more inches of snow at the end of the storm, but snowfall ended quickly and no new snow accumulated overnight. Winds this morning were blowing 8-25 mph from the west and southwest with mountain temperatures near 10 degrees F around Bozeman and Big Sky and single digits near West Yellowstone and Cooke City. Valley temperatures are colder in most areas especially West Yellowstone where they are about 20 degrees below 0 F. Today will be similar to yesterday under a ridge of high pressure with mostly sunny skies. Air temperatures will only reach the 20s F but will feel much warmer and should be significantly warmer tomorrow as warm air approaches from the south. Winds will blow 15-20 mph at ridgetops from the west southwest.