A top 10 spring day in central Montana on Tuesday, with mostly sunny skies and highs in the upper 60s to low 70s. It'll be a bit breezy, with sustained winds between 10 and 20 mph.
A powerful cold front moves into northern parts of Montana late tonight and will gradually drift south across the state on Wednesday. Precipitation will begin as rain in the lower elevations but will transition to snow as the day progresses. Steady snow pushes south toward I-90, tapering off to snow showers throughout Thursday morning.
Right now, it looks like the lower elevations east of I-15 will see the least impact, with a coating of up to 3 inches of snow. West of I-15, snow amounts will increase, especially closer to the Continental Divide. I-90 is likely to be treacherous on Thursday morning as snow will be falling across a large stretch of the interstate. The mountain passes will be particularly hazardous.
A sharp drop in temperatures is also expected on Wednesday and Thursday, with highs in the 40s to low 50s on Wednesday and mid to upper 30s and low 40s on Thursday. A cold breeze from the north, sustained at 10 to 25 mph and gusting to 40 mph, will make it feel quite chilly.
Conditions will improve on Friday and Saturday, with plenty of sunshine and dry weather. Temperatures will rise from the 50s on Friday into the 60s on Saturday.
On Easter Sunday, more clouds are expected as another disturbance moves into the region. It will be cooler and a bit breezy, with daytime highs in the 50s to low 60s and sustained wind speeds between 10 and 20 mph.
