JACKSON, Wyo. – A strong and moisture-laden storm produced 14 inches of snow in the town of Jackson from Sunday night through Tuesday morning. However, warm air took over on Tuesday afternoon and snow turned to light rain, while temperatures rose into the 40s on Wednesday resulting in a slushy mess around town.
Heavy Snow Event for the Town of Jackson and Lower Valley
The town of Jackson receives its fair share of snowfall over the course of a typical winter, but individual snow events are typically light to moderate with the higher elevations of the Tetons receiving more substantial snow totals.
We occasionally see heavy snow events in town as well, and that’s what happened early this week.
A strong storm impacted Southern and Central California on Sunday, and a significant fetch of moisture and energy reached Western Wyoming from the south in the days to follow.
Winds aloft were out of the due south with this storm, which minimized the shadowing effect of the Tetons that occurs with more typical westerly flows. The southerly wind direction allowed significant moisture to spill into the Jackson Hole Valley and produce heavy snow.
Two-day snow totals from Sunday night through Tuesday morning included 13.9 inches in North Jackson near the Elk Refuge (official climate station) and 13.8 inches in East Jackson. These two stations picked up an additional 0.5 to 0.8 inches of snow on Tuesday night.
When evaluating 2-day snow totals with measurements taken each morning, this was the biggest snow event in the town of Jackson since late January of 2021, and one of the bigger events we’ve seen in the past 10 years.
The list below shows the heaviest 2-day snow events in Jackson since 2014:
- 21.0″ – February 4-5, 2019
- 18.0″ – March 15-16, 2020
- 14.5″ – January 27-28, 2021
- 13.9″ – February 5-6, 2024
- 13.0″ – January 11-12, 2018
- 12.3″ – January 13-14, 2020
- 11.2″ – December 24-25, 2016
- 10.9″ – March 1-2, 2014
- 10.7″ – November 14-15, 2014
- 10.6″ – January 10-11, 2017
- 10.5″ – November 23-24, 2018
- 10.5″ – December 22-23, 2015
Snow King reaped the benefits of this storm and enjoyed excellent powder skiing conditions on Monday after picking up 15 inches over 36 hours. This was a much-needed storm for the town ski hill during what has otherwise been a challenging season.
Elsewhere in the Jackson Hole Valley, snow totals from this storm include 16.8 inches in Moose, 16 inches in Teton Village, and 11.7 inches at Jackson Lake (Moran weather station).
As impressive as this storm was, conditions quickly changed in the town of Jackson on Tuesday and Wednesday as warmer air arrived.
Temperatures rose into the mid to upper 30s during the day on Tuesday and snow changed over to light rain in town. On Tuesday night, we did see a change-over back to snow and picked up an additional 0.5-0.8 inches of accumulation overnight with temperatures hovering around freezing.
On Wednesday, snow showers early in the morning changed over to a rain/snow mix by mid to late morning before ending around midday. Snow showers continued over the Tetons, but patches of blue sky appeared in the valley and temperatures rose into the 40s.
Rapid snowmelt has led to wet, slushy, and generally sloppy conditions around town and icy sidewalks will be a concern in the days to follow once colder air arrives.
Heavy Snow for the Tetons, Too
Not surprisingly, the Tetons have seen impressive snow totals during this cycle over the past several days.
A storm on Saturday and into early Sunday favored the west side of the Tetons with Grand Targhee picking up 16 inches of snow, while the east side of the Tetons received much lighter snow totals.
The storm on Monday produced snow totals of 13-17 inches at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort and Grand Targhee. On Tuesday and Tuesday night, snow continued to favor the southern and eastern Tetons with an additional 10-13 inches falling at JHMR while Targhee saw lighter snowfall of 2 inches.
Snow totals over the past 5 days include 37 inches at Jackson Hole’s Rendezvous Bowl Plot, 32 inches at Jackson Hole’s Raymer Plot, 24 inches at Jackson Hole’s Mid-Mountain Plot, and 31 inches at Grand Targhee’s Chief Joseph Bowl Plot.
Snowpack in the Upper Snake River Basin (as measured by snow water equivalent) is currently 83% of average, which is up from 76% at this time last week.
Upcoming Weather Pattern
We will remain in an active pattern from Wednesday night through Friday as weaker disturbances track across the area.
Winds aloft have shifted from southerly to westerly (blowing out of the west), and this lead to more orographically-focused snow showers that will favor the west side and upper east side of the Teton Range with much lighter snow for the valley.
Temperatures are still mild on Wednesday afternoon, but colder air will arrive on Wednesday night and precipitation will change back to rain in the valley. Snow quality will also transition to drier and more powdery in the Tetons on Thursday and Friday.
High temperatures will reach the low 30s in the valley on Thursday and upper 20s on Friday as the colder airmass settles in.
Conditions will dry out on Saturday and Sunday, but the colder airmass will remain in place along with varying degrees of cloud cover. Highs will reach the upper 20s in the valley on both days.
Here is a 7-day snowfall projection through next Wednesday (February 7), with much of this happening over the next 2-3 days.
Next week (February 11-17), the pattern will remain seasonally cold with occasional weak disturbances possible that would favor light to moderate snow. Significant snow is not expected, but we also are not expecting any significant warm spells like we’ve had on many occasions this winter.
Alan Smith, Meteorologist
