A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY is in effect for the mountains southwest Montana into Wednesday afternoon.
Powerful storms continue to batter California with flooding rain and deep mountain snow with little left for Montana. Some of this rain and mountain snow is hitting other states hard as well like Oregon, Nevada and Utah. Most of these states have seasonal snowpack between 150-200% statewide. Montana's snowpack is right around 100-120% of normal but most of that was from November and December. This pattern is more like an El Nino than a La Nina, and Montana is in a pattern with mild and drier conditions over the last few weeks and this should continue for at least another two weeks. A storm system that moved through California will move through to our south into Wednesday. Southwestern Montana including Monida Pass could see up to 6" of snow. Highs will range from the 10s and 20s north-central and northeast Montana, to the 30s elsewhere. Besides that snow in southwestern parts of the state, everywhere else will be partly to mostly cloudy with light wind. Thursday will be partly to mostly cloudy with highs generally in the 30s and 40s, still a few 20s up in the northeast part of the state. Friday will be a mild day with hgihs in the 40s and 50s under partly to mostly cloudy skies. A stronger southwest wind will gust up to 40mph across the plains. This weekend is the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday and quiet weather will continue. Another fraction of a bigger Pacific storm could bring a few flakes or drops to parts of the state Saturday and then again Sunday night, but most of the weekend will be mild and a little windy. Highs will be in the 30s and 40s. January thus far has been more like a "thaw" and that will continue for Montana for the forseeable future.
Curtis Grevenitz
Chief Meteorologist
