Southern Clearwater Mountains storm history

A 41 year old man heading west on U.S. Highway 12, lost control as he crossed an icy bridge deck over Lolo Creek near mile-marker 7 and shortly died thereafter. Another vehicle heading eastbound had to swerve into a ditch attempting to avoid a collision but still was side-swiped …

While 4 to 6 inches of snow fell at both Lolo Pass and Dixie, the higher elevations of the Bitterroot Mountains received over a foot of snowfall.

The Idaho side of the Bitterroot crest absorbed heavy moisture from the atmospheric river, leading to high-impact winter conditions right along the Lolo Pass border. Further down the Highway 12 corridor at Powell, intense snowfall rates dropped 5 inches of snow in just a 6-hour p…

A falling tree struck a semi-truck at milepost 96 on US-12, just one mile west of Lowell. In an accident near Elk City, a truck was struck by mud and trees sliding down a hillside, while a motorist on SH-13 had a tree fall through their vehicle windshield. Blockages including mul…

Between 6 and 7 inches of snow fell between Elk City and Dixie, while the mountains, including both Lolo Pass and Red River Hot Springs, saw much heavier totals of 1 to 2 feet. Precipitation changed to freezing rain at Elk City during the evening of December 5, but air temperatur…

Snowfall totals were variable across the mountains, ranging from 3 inches at Lolo Pass to 12 inches at Mountain Meadows.

Snotel reported 3 inches of snowfall at Lolo Pass, 3 inches at Mountain Meadows, and 6 inches at Savage Pass.

Low temperatures dropped to 30-33 degrees at Elk City and Powell for the first time in the fall season leading to significant frost and damage to area gardens. Frosty mornings continued through the rest of the week.

An avalanche blocked the eastbound lane of Highway 12 near Elk Summit Road and Powell Junction. The avalanche was estimated to be 8 feet tall and 30 feet long.

Very heavy wet snow fell at times and brought slick conditions to U.S. Highway 12. Power outages were reported the morning of the 18th due to the heavy snow rates from snow bands. Snowfall ranges include: 9 inches in Syringa, 2 feet at Lolo Pass, a foot at Dixie and 3 feet fell n…

Idaho County Sheriff's Office declared emergency travel only for U.S. Highways 95 and 12 due to winter driving conditions on February 4 at 1805PST. They reported 'several accidents' and stated that visibility was limited due to snow. The power company reported 692 customers witho…

Lolo Pass received 14 inches of heavy snow during the event. Freezing rain caused slick surfaces in the lower elevations.

Lolo Pass received 14 inches of heavy snow during the event. Freezing rain caused slick surfaces in the lower elevations.

Between 6 and 12 inches of snow fell in the mountains, including at Lolo pass. The COOP in Dixie reported a total snowfall of 6.6 inches.

Lolo Pass SNOTEL recorded 7 inches of snow and 0.60 inches of snow water equivalent. Savage Pass SNOTEL recorded 5 inches of snow.

Widespread freezing temperatures occurred with readings from the upper 20s to lower 30s observed. Typical cold spots dropped into the upper teens. Damage occurred to unprotected sensitive vegetation.

Lowell saw its highest reading of 105 degrees on the 18th. Other readings include 101 in Powell, 107 at the Moose Creek RAWS and 99 degrees in Elk City.

The Fenn RAWS hit 100 or higher five times during this heatwave. The highest readings occurred on the 9th when Fenn was 105 degrees, and on the 10th when the Moose Creek RAWS hit 107 degrees.

From 0.6 to 1.1 inch of snow water equivalent fell, estimated at 5 to 9 inches of snow. Backcountry travel was difficult.

Difficult travel conditions were reported on Highway 12 at Lolo Pass by the Idaho Transportation Department. Chains were required over the pass for a period of time. Lolo Pass picked up around 17 inches of total snow accumulation.

The Savage Pass SNOTEL picked up 8 inches of snow while Lolo Pass received 9 inches. Mountain Meadows which is located south of Red River Hot Springs picked up 3 inches of snow. Temperatures fell into the 20s from Lolo Pass to Powell on US-12 which could have produced black ice o…

Isolated extreme cold occurred with a low of -31F in Dixie and a low of -33F at Elk City.

Dixie received 5.8 inches of snow. Snotel sites along US Highway 2 reported 8 to 13 inches.

The ITD snow depth sensor at Powell on US-12 reported very heavy snow, 4.4 inches in 3 hours, during the morning hours associated with the passage of the cold front. Other snow amounts include around 7 inches Lolo Pass and Mountain Meadows. The Elk City sensor reported heavy snow…

The Lolo Pass sensor recorded 0.80 inches of snow water equivalent which could equate to 8 to 10 inches of snow with temps in the upper 20s. Dixie only received 1.1 inches and Mountain Meadows SNOTEL received 2 inches of snow depth increase.

The Dixie observer reported 3.8 inches of snow and webcams revealed periods of light to moderate snowfall down to the valley locations.

The Lolo Pass SNOTEL recorded heavy snow with 3 inches falling from 1400 to 1500PST. Other snow amounts include: 5.6 inches at Dixie and 8 inches at the Twin Lakes SNOTEL.

Between 6 and 12 inches of heavy snow fell across the mountains of Idaho County, especially towards the Montana border. The Dixie COOP reported 9.6 inches and the Mountain Meadows SNOTEL reported close to a foot of snow. Hunters and recreationists were likely negatively impacted …

Between 4 and 6 inches of snow fell in the higher terrain of the Bitterroot and Clearwater Mountains. The snow rates were moderate to heavy at times and brought slick conditions at Lolo Pass.

The Idaho County Sheriff reported numerous slide-offs and accidents because of the snow-covered roads. Webcams showed heavy wet snow in the lower elevations weighing the trees down and subsequently a power outage occurred thereafter in the Pete King area. SNOTEL stations reported…

The observer in Dixie reported 3.9 inches of snow while the Lolo Pass SNOTEL recorded a snow depth increase of 3 inches.

Snow amounts of 5-10 inches were observed above 5000 feet, impacting backcountry users. Highway 12 was also slick and snow covered at Lolo Pass multiple times.

Heavy snow was observed across the southern Clearwater Mountains, with 9.4 inches of snow being reported in Dixie.

A large avalanche, more than 10 feet deep and up to 40 feet wide was triggered by heavy snow near milepost 136 on US-12. This along with treefall caused the highway to be closed for 3 days. The last time an avalanche crossed US-12 was in 2008. The date and time of the avalanche i…

More than 2 feet of heavy snow fell across the region with the Idaho Department of Transportation stating that the snow rates were up to 3 inches per hour at times. US-12 between Kooskia and Powell was closed from 2 pm PST Jan. 6 through 4 pm Jan. 9 due to avalanche and treefall …

High temperatures ranged from the upper 90s to 107 degrees at lower elevations with overnight lows in the 60s.

More than 600 customers were affected by power outages in an area from Grangeville to Elk City to Dixie, ID. In the mountains, there were multiple measured gusts in the 40s mph, while Hells Half RAWS (elevation of 8100 feet) measured the highest gust of 57 mph.

General snow totals of 6-18 inches occurred with the heaviest totals at Lolo Pass with 21 inches. Chains were also required for towing units over Lolo Pass with snow covered roads all the way to Lowell.

A combination of heavy snow and falling trees (around 30-40 trees) caused power outages and blocked roads throughout the zone. The area from Lowell to just west of Bald Mountain on US Highway 12 received 18 inches of heavy snow, which was very significant for these lower elevatio…

Heavy snow fell above 3000 feet with rates over 1 inch per hour at times. Snow totals of 10 to 18 inches were common with 15 inches in Elk City and 18 inches at Red River Hot Springs. Periods of difficult travel were observed.

Periods of moderate to heavy snowfall impacted the southern Clearwater Mountains. Total snowfall amounts included 7 inches in Lowell and 4 inches at Lolo Pass.

Fifteen inches of heavy snow was reported at Lolo Pass during the event. Other snow amounts include 7.5 inches at Selway Lodge and 3.1 inches in Dixie.

Downed trees were reported along Highway 12 from Lowell to the Montana border. Sporadic power and phone outages occurred at Lowell. Wind gusts were generally 40 to 45 mph.

An estimated 2 to 4 feet of snow fell in higher elevations, while the Dixie COOP measured a single day record of 30 inches. In addition, as lower elevations warmed, snow changed to rain which caused mudslides on US-12 between mile-markers 93 to 97, which are 17 to 21 miles east o…

General snow amounts of 4 to 9 inches fell above 4000 feet with some locations above 6000 feet, recording over 12 inches of snow. Also, wind gusts to 40 mph were observed on the higher terrain. Difficult travel was experienced by backcountry users with periodic slippery, snow-cov…

A prolonged period of snowfall led to significant accumulations with 18 inches being reported in Lowell, 10 inches in Dixie, and 10 inches near Harpster.

A prolonged period of moderate to heavy snowfall impacted travel on Highway 12 over Lolo Pass were close to 2 feet of snowfall was observed.

A period of heavy snowfall created impacts to travel over Lolo Pass on Highway 12, with up to 14 inches of snowfall being reported.

A period of heavy snow lead to difficult travel during the morning hours. Snowfall of 5 to 10 inches were commonly observed by the public.

Snowfall rates of 2 to 3 inches per hour were observed on U.S. Highway 12 between Lowell and Bald Mountain with general amounts of at least a foot. Heavy snowfall made travel difficult.