West Glacier Region storm history

Glacier Park rangers reported 10 to 12 inches of snow. The Logan Pass snow measuring site recorded 11 inches in 24 hours. The Park closed the Going to the Sun Road. The storm stranded park visitors, and buses slid off the road. One person was killed in a slip and fall accident on…

Two teenager kayakers drowned on Swan Lake following the development of strong offshore winds.

Widespread snow, wind, and dangerously low wind chills were observed. Snow amounts generally ranged from 5-14 inches with 22 inches reported near Marias Pass. Easterly wind gusts of 30-40 miles per hour resulted in blowing and drifting snow with wind chills of -15F to -30F at low…

Flathead County Search and Rescue personnel reported a large avalanche on the back side of Big Mountain Ski Resort. Two skiers were killed and one was injured. The avalanche was initiated by another skier who was skiing out of bounds in an area closed to skiing.

Severe driving conditions were observed on U.S. Highway 2 due to a combination of falling snow and blowing snow as winds gusted to 50 mph. Power outages were also noted around Bad Rock Canyon and Swan Lake due to falling trees.

The COOP observer in Essex reported 4.8 inches of snow, while 3.7 inches of snow fell in West Glacier. A power outage impacted over 300 customers due to strong winds in the Essex area.

The Hungry Horse RAWS recorded a peak wind gust of 66 mph between 0311MST and 0411MST, followed by subsequent gusts of 55 mph and 57 mph through 0611MST. The high winds caused immediate and severe utility disruptions. Flathead Electric Cooperative reported that the main lines fee…

Glacier National Park reported that at least 50 trees fell down along the Going-To-The-Sun Road, Camas Road and bike paths. Multiple trees were reported down 10 miles northwest of Essex, laying against power lines and several had blocked U.S. Highway 2 at Milepost 171. Trees were…

Strong winds late on the 15th resulted in widespread tree damage between Columbia Falls and Pinnacle, with dozens of trees snapped or uprooted. The Hungry Horse Fire Department remained on scene overnight to clear debris from secondary roads. Significant structural and property d…

Strong winds impacted the canyon regions early on December 6, with valley gusts reaching 50 to 55 mph and mountain peaks seeing gusts between 60 and 80 mph. At 0255MST, a tree was blown into a power line in the Coram area, contributing to outages for approximately 400 customers b…

While lower elevations saw moderate snow accumulations of 2 to 7 inches, including 2.3 inches in West Glacier and 7 inches at Marias Pass, the higher terrain received 1 to 2 feet of new snow. The most hazardous travel conditions were experienced at Marias Pass, where southwest wi…

Snowfall amounts in the valleys ranged from 5 and 6 inches between Hungry Horse Dam and West Glacier, with up to 7 inches at Essex. The mountains received 8 to 12 inches of new snow. Along U.S. Highway 2 between Devil's Creek and Marias Pass, wind gusts between 30 and 40 mph caus…

Montana Department of Transportation in West Glacier reported 6 to 8 inches, with high amounts in isolated areas. He said they had a little bit of wind, with gusts around 30 mph, with a little blowing and drifting.

Web cameras indicated heavy snow falling around West Glacier. Marias Pass received 0.4 inches of snow-water equivalent.

A high-impact early-season snow and strong east wind event resulted in the closure of Going-to-the-Sun Road (GTTSR) at Logan Pass due to hazardous ice development beneath 6 to 8 inches of snow and was confirmed by plow operators. Mountain zones across the region (above 5,000 feet…

Icy conditions necessitated the closure of the Going-to-the-Sun Road within Glacier National Park. The hazardous surface was a direct result of up to 4 inches of snow that fell across the area.

Morning low temperatures dropped to 28 degrees at typical cold spots such as Polebridge and Condon for the first time in the fall season leading to significant frost and damage to area gardens. Frosty mornings continued the rest of the week.

The RAWS station at Mount Aeneas (7120 ft) recorded a peak wind gust of 88 mph. Within Glacier National Park, an estimated 10 trees were downed, many of them large Lodgepole Pines with diameters up to 24 inches wide. One of these trees fell onto a parked car at the Lake McDonald …

Snow began on the afternoon of the 21st and continued through the morning of the 22nd. Going-to-the-Sun Road was closed due to hazardous driving conditions going over Logan Pass during this period. New snowfall was estimated at 10 inches at Logan Pass, with accumulation reported …

Heavy snowfall rates of 1 to 2 inches per hour occurred during this event between Essex and Marias Pass along U.S. Highway 2. Marias Pass received 7 inches of snow, accompanied by northeast winds gusting to 25 mph. The COOP observer at Essex measured 5.1 inches of snow.

At Marias Pass, 7 inches of snow fell, accompanied by northeast winds between 7 and 12 mph, with gusts to 25 mph. Temperatures fell to 4 below zero the following morning. Java East, located at the U.S. Highway 2 bend southeast of Essex, received 3.4 inches of snow. During the mor…

Light freezing rain resulted in icy conditions on U.S. Highway 2. Unplowed side roads turned to sheets of ice. An avalanche measuring 20 to 30 feet high and 75 feet wide, completely blocked Going-To-The-Sun Road. Higher elevations above 7000 feet gusted as high as 78 mph early on…

Montana Department of Transportation reported severe driving conditions on State Highway 83 at 0530 on February 17. Law enforcement reported a motor vehicle accident on Highway 2 east of West Glacier. Four to 8 inches of snow fell in the Glacier Region, but closer to 18 inches fe…

Total snowfall ranged from 2 inches in West Glacier, to 5.4 inches in Essex, and up to 6 inches at both Swan Lake and Marias Pass. Easterly winds between 8 and 13 mph, with gusts up to 24 mph between Essex and Marias Pass, caused blowing and drifting snow.

Low temperatures in the Glacier Region generally ranged between 10 and 20 below zero, with the coldest reading observed at 28 below in Polebridge.

The Montana Department of Transportation reported 8 to 9 inches of new snow, along with strong easterly winds that made it difficult to keep Highway 2 open. Very cold temperatures accompanied the snow and wind, resulting in wind chills of -30 to -40 degrees Fahrenheit. The Swan V…

Severe driving conditions were hoisted Saturday morning along Highway 83 from Ferndale south towards Condon. This event continued into February 1. Storm total snowfall included 2.5 inches in West Glacier and 5.6 inches in Essex.

Severe driving conditions was hoisted Saturday morning along Highway 83 from Ferndale south towards Condon. This event continued into February 1. Storm total snowfall included 2.5 inches in West Glacier and 5.6 inches in Essex.

Mountain locations reported 20 to 30 below zero wind chills in the Glacier Region.

Roads became slick by Friday evening, February 3, in the Swan Valley and along US-2 from Columbia Falls to West Glacier. The fresh snowfall of 4 to 8 inches, combined with strong winds gusting up to 35 mph, caused blowing and drifting snow, reducing visibility along the US-2 corr…

Rain on snow caused icy conditions. Winds gusted up to 55 mph near Marias Pass and up to 82 mph on the higher mountain ridges. Localized power outages were observed near Swan Lake with 171 customers losing power.

Montana Department of Transportation reported about a foot of snow at Java (east of Essex). MDT stated there has been blowing and drifting east of Java, and described the situation as a nightmare for them to keep up the roads the last 36 hours. They were fighting with ice, especi…

Noisy Basin SNOTEL at 6040 feet recorded 2.00 inches of snow water equivalent and 11.0' estimated snowfall. Marias Pass SNOTEL recorded 0.43' snow water equivalent and an estimated 4-5' of snow.

Glacier National Park reported multiple trees down including 12 trees along the North Fork Road, trees down near the Walton Ranger Station near Essex and mile-marker 182 on U.S. Highway 2, trees down along Camas Road, near Lake MacDonald and in Apgar.

Morning temperatures ranged from the upper 20s to lower 30s. Damage occurred to unprotected sensitive vegetation.

Winds gusted to 53 mph at Marias Pass and 52 mph at Hungry Horse RAWS with a higher elevation gusts of 104 mph at Tunnel Ridge. Periods of snow fell with 1-3 inches at lower elevations, and up to 7 inches fell at Marias Pass. Travel was difficult at times.

Heavy snow and gusty winds occurred and caused roads to be slick with ice underneath the snow. A weather spotter in Hungry Horse and COOP in West Glacier both reported 9 inches of snowfall during the event.

Across the West Glacier Region, the wind chills ranged from -30 to -45F between West Glacier and Marias Pass, in the -15 to -20F range between Columbia Falls and West Glacier and -50 to -60F in the mountains.

A weak arctic push brought heavy snow to Marias Pass between 6 and 9 am on the 20th, then ramped up again by the evening including Essex. Points north and west received a mixture of rain and snow before the arctic push westward overnight. Severe driving conditions were reported f…

Snow totals included 5 at Blankenship Bridge, 10-12 in the Swan Mountains, 9 in the mountains NW of Essex, 4 at Stahl Peak, and 6 at Big Mountain.

Montana Department of Transportation road map showed a stretch of US-2 from West Glacier to Marias Pass with black ice from freezing rain that had fallen.

MDT declared severe driving on US Highway 2 between Columbia Falls and Marias Pass as freezing rain led to extremely slick conditions.

MDT declared severe driving conditions on US Highway 2 as freezing rain lead to extremely slick conditions. Two tenths of an inch of freezing rain was reported in Essex. A downed tree caused 378 customers to lose power.

Widespread wind chills of 40 to 55 below zero were observed. Snowslip Mountain in Glacier National Park recorded a wind chill of 70 below zero. Temperatures fell to 49 below at Marias Pass, 47 below in Polebridge, 36 below in Hungry Horse, and 34 below in West Glacier.

Heavy snow and east-northeast winds of 20-30 mph with gusts to 45 mph led to periods of whiteout conditions on US Highway 2 east of West Glacier. MDT and the Essex COOP reported 29 inches of snowfall. 14 inches of snow was measured in West Glacier.

Heavy snow, along with blowing and drifting snow caused very tough driving conditions across the area, particularly from Essex to Marias Pass on US Highway 2. Wind chills fell to 30 to 35 below zero between Essex and Marias Pass and reached as low as 55 below in the mountains of …

A moist Pacific front, then arctic front passage initiated very heavy snow rates between 1 to 2 inches per hour, gusty winds to 25 mph with blowing and drifting snow, and very low visibility along US-2 between Hungry Horse and Marias Pass. Heavy snow showers enhanced by the exist…

A moist Pacific front, followed by an arctic front initiated very heavy snow rates between 1 to 2 inches per hour, gusty winds to 25 mph with blowing and drifting snow, and very low visibility along US-2 between Hungry Horse and Marias Pass. Heavy snow showers enhanced by the exi…