Spring snowstorm expected in Glacier Park region
The Middle Fork is coated in snow in this file photo. Higher elevations of Glacier should see snow this weekend.
A snowstorm is expected to hit the Glacier National Park region this weekend, with 4 to 8 inches of snow from Essex to Marias Pass and a brisk 40 mph northerly wind.
As such, the National Weather Service has issued a winter storm watch from Saturday afternoon through Sunday morning.
The weather is expected to start out wet on Friday and get progressively worse through the weekend. By Monday morning the region will dry out, though it will be cold and sensitive plants could freeze, the weather service is warning. Tuesday and Wednesday mornings will be cold as well, with lows in the 20s and teens, depending on location and elevation.
East of the Divide in Glacier could see even bigger snowfall totals, the weather service predicts, with heavy snow expected Saturday night.
Overall, the system is expected to bring between .25 and .75 inch of precipitation.
The snow level Saturday night should drop to about 3,500 feet. West Glacier is just under 3,000 feet, for comparison. But bicyclists and hikers on the Going-to-the-Sun Road will surely see snow as they gain elevation. Park plows this week have made it to just below the Weeping Wall, which is a little more than 3 miles from Logan Pass. East side crews are at Siyeh Bend.
Spring snow in Glacier is not uncommon, as snow has been known to fall any month of the year.