The snow was a bit slower to develop today in the Cascades with generally 5-10 inches in many locations during Friday. The Wasatch scored big time with a full-on sneak up powder day especially in Little Cottonwood Canyon (14 inches).
The bottom line for the weekend:
Heavy snowfall is a sure bet for the Cascades of Washington and Oregon through Monday. By Sunday/Monday resorts from Stevens Pass south into Oregon will be favored. A final wave moves into the Cascades Sunday night into Monday. That wave will favor southern WA resorts and most of Oregon. Mount Bachelor over the next several days will be deep. Inland, especially the northern Panhandle of Idaho should score decent snowfall Saturday and Sunday (*Schweitzer). Western Cascade Range will be in the 2-3 foot range by late Sunday. Some additional snow (7-9) with colder temps will fall into Monday (Blower. colder).
In the Rockies favored locations continue to be western Idaho (Brundage), Wasatch and the Tetons. Moderate snow will fall in these areas as several waves move through. It's hard to pinpoint the deepest single periods. I like Saturday (Storm ski) for the Tetons and Wasatch (5-10) and again Sunday night into Monday (5-10). Southern Montana will also see snowfall increasing throughout the period. Another perhaps slightly deeper system hits the Tetons and Wasatch and southern Montana (Big Sky) for Monday night into Tuesday (7-12). That storm will combine overnight light or moderate amounts from Monday night to combine with daytime snow Tuesday.
For Colorado, I don't see any single deep event (light to moderate waves every 24 hours) until Tuesday late AM to early Wednesday. Steamboat might be on the higher end. NW flow may bring some deep surprises to the I-70 corridor favoring western resorts like Aspen, Steamboat, Beaver Creek and perhaps Vail Pass. The most likely timeframe will be Tuesday-Wednesday.
The early week storm in Oregon (Next Monday) drops south into the Sierra by Tuesday (5-10). This is the teaser before the main event next Thursday.
Yet, another storm next week drops along the Pacific Coast on Wednesday night into Thursday bringing a good chance of a deep storm for the Sierra that deserves watching.
Powderchaser Steve
