MISSOULA — Friday will be the last warm day for a while, but it won't be totally enjoyable. Wind will be picking up through the late morning and staying strong into the evening. Gusts could reach up to 40 MPH. This will create choppy conditions on Flathead Lake. This will also increase the fire danger through the day.
A wintry system enters the region late Friday night into Saturday. Temperatures will be much colder, with highs only reaching the low 50s on Saturday, and the 40s on Sunday.
Overall, there are too many factors working against us in the lower elevations of western Montana to see any meaningful snow. Warm ground temps, high sun angle, and overall lack of precipitation coverage really limit what we can see here. I do think a quick transition over to some snow in areas south of Missoula is possible through, it just will have trouble sticking.
We will, however, see some good early season totals for our mountains, with up to half a foot possible in the high peaks of the Bitterroot and Sapphires.
This system moves out of the area Sunday night. A hard freeze is likely by Monday morning with lows dipping well into the 20s, so be sure to prepare you pipes and care for the plants as soon as possible.
Another wintry system will come into the forecast towards the middle of next week. More details on that to come.
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MONTANA WEATHER ALERTS:
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