JACKSON HOLE, WYO – President’s Day weekend looks like a snowy one. Honest Abe.
It’s been a winter of misses as far as storms are concerned. The season has been so mild managers at the National Elk Refuge are considering not throwing pellets to elk on the feedgrounds this winter. That hasn’t happened since 1981.
Yet in Montana, more snow has fallen in Billings this winter than in the past 40 years. That state certainly needs it after last year’s horrific wildfire season.
In Jackson Hole, many Facebook posters are having fun with comparing photos of their roofs and decks this year with last. Jackson Hole Mountain Resort is reporting a respectable 314 inches to date. It might not seem epic after last season but compared to most ski resorts in the mountain west it is good enough for the resort to notch its best January ever in skier days.
Contrasting this winter with last’s is crazy. Last year, the Shriner’s ski joring event was cancelled because of too much snow. This year, not enough. Parks & Rec could barely keep up with trail grooming last winter. This year, they quit grooming many trails and pathways due to low snow and warm conditions.
So, will anyone believe us if we say: Watch out this weekend, snow coming? Buckrail is making the bold statement after conferring with four different weather forecasters, who all jibe with a weekend storm of some kind. National Weather Service, Weather Underground, MountainWeather, and Dark Sky all agree: we are looking at a decent chance of big snow beginning late Friday, through Saturday, and tapering off late Sunday.
The storm cycle will have some cold air in behind it so look for that snow to stay a while through next week.
