A WINTER STORM WARNING has been issued for the west and east sides of Glacier National Park.
A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY has been issued for Liberty and Toole Counties, down the Rocky Mountain Front and Continental Divide.
Happy November! While the new month started out mild, this is the "warm before the storm" as much colder weather and snow will hit parts of the state on Wednesday. A cold front will continue to sink southward through Montana Tuesday night into Wednesday. Snow levels will be dropping through the night and snow will move south into Helena and Great Falls through the morning. Right now there may be a burst of heavier snow as the cold front moves through in the morning hours and there is even a chance at thundersnow. As a strong low pressure moves into Montana on Wednesday morning, the atmosphere will be "lifted" by the energy from the low pressure but also by the undercutting cold front. Snow could briefly come down very heavily with thunder, but the snow does not look prolonged. The heaviest accumulation will be along the Rocky Mountain Front and in the East Glacier area. Helena and Great Falls could see up to about an inch but hardly any snow will accumulate east of this area. Highs will be in the 30s to around 40, but eastern Montana will warm to about 50-55 with little to no precipitation there. Colder air will sweep across the state Wednesday night with most areas dropping into the 10s and 20s. Thursday will be mostly sunny to partly cloudy with highs in the 30s. A strong wind will develop Thursday night and blow across the state on Friday. A HIGH WIND WARNING may be necessary for gusts topping 60mph. The fresh snow around the East Glacier area and the Rocky Mountain Front will get blown around by the developing strong wind. Highs will be in the 40s and 50s Friday afternoon. A strong wind will continue Friday night into Saturday. Saturday a cold front will move across the state with showers of rain and snow in the lower elevations, but the mountains will have heavy snow and wind for most of the day. While highs may reach the 40s to around 50 in the lower elevations, expect falling temperatures through the afternoon and evening as the coldest airmass of the season moves in. Sunday will be cold with highs in the 20s and 30s. There will be a few areas of light snow on Sunday, but nothing like what could come through Monday. A significant snow and serious cold are likely. Lower elevations could see more than 6" and high temperatures may only top out in the 10s and 20s. Overnight lows could drop below 0 for the first time this season. Continued cold with more snow is possible Tuesday and Wednesday. Some advice: I'd try to get my snow tires on by next week as there will be a longer stretch of snow and cold temperatures that may linger into the beginning of November.
Curtis Grevenitz
Chief Meteorologist
