Heavy Snow — Sawtooth Mountains, Idaho

2012-01-17 to 2012-01-20 · Sawtooth Mountains, Idaho

Event narrative

Heavy snow fell above 7000 feet in the Sawtooth region. 50 inches fell at Mill Creek Summit with 14 inches at Smiley Mountain, 10 inches at Stickney Mill, and 15 inches at Bear Canyon.

Wider weather episode

Massive amounts of Pacific moisture infiltrated the mountains of southeast Idaho after a relatively dry winter to that point. A large number of SNOTEL sites recorded over a foot of snow with as much ast 70 inches reported across the region. 3 to 6 foot amounts were common.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 361765. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.