High Wind — Wind River Mountains East, Wyoming

2022-11-05 · Wind River Mountains East, Wyoming

Event narrative

Very strong winds occurred in the Wind River Mountains. Winds gusted above hurricane force for several hours at Red Canyon along South Pass with a maximum gust of 111 mph. The pass was shut down for several hours due to high wind and blowing snow.

Wider weather episode

Low pressure passed across Wyoming and brought a combination of heavy snow in the mountains and high winds in the lee of the Absaroka Range, lee of the Wind River Range, and the wind corridor from eastern Sweetwater to Natrona County. The heaviest snow fell in the Tetons, where up to 20 inches of new snow was reported at the local ski resort. Many more locations saw high wind. The highest reported wind gust was 111 mph at Red Canyon along South Pass. Wind gusts past 58 mph were also reported in portions of Fremont, Johnson, Natrona, Park and Sweetwater Counties. The snow and wind closed some roads, especially mountain passes, including South Pass.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1067308. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.