MISSOULA — Our lone dry day of the week is today with valley fog in the morning and mostly cloudy skies by the afternoon. Highs today top out mostly in the low to mid 30s.
A complex weather system sets up Thursday into Friday as a mild weather and abundant moisture moves in from the Pacific Ocean.
The key to this forecast will be valley temperatures. Cold air is expected to linger in many valleys into Thursday afternoon and evening, this would keep precipitation falling as snow. However, temperatures will slowly be warming through the weekend, so once valleys get above freezing rain/snow, rain or freezing rain will begin to fall.
Icy roads will be a concern during the overnight and early morning hours through the weekend as wet roads freeze once the sun sets.
Temperatures will continue to warm with a wintry mix or rain in the lower elevations through the weekend and into the start of next week.
During all of this, elevations above 5,000 ft. will see steady snow where amounts could be measured in feet by the end of the weekend.
