Happy Friday Eve! After a busy day yesterday, high pressure builds in briefly today, leading to calmer winds, clearing skies, and plentiful sunshine. However, temperatures will be a touch cooler, with daytime highs in the upper 20s and lower 30s.
Another winter storm is set to impact central Montana from Friday into the weekend. Ahead of this system, gusty winds will return to the Rocky Mountain Front on Friday. A High Wind Watch is in effect for the Rocky Mountain Front from this evening through Friday afternoon, with frequent gusts of 50-70+ mph expected in this area. Meanwhile, the rest of central Montana will experience 40-50+ mph gusts Friday night into Saturday.
The stronger winds will allow temperatures to warm into the mid to upper 30s and low to mid 40s. Clouds will increase, and scattered rain or snow showers will develop mainly during the evening, particularly in the mountains and along the Hi-Line.
There will be scattered light to moderate snow across central and eastern Montana Friday night into Saturday, especially for areas east of I-15. However, the main event will occur in the mountains, where many areas can expect 1 to 2 feet of snowfall from midday Friday through Monday morning. The Little Belts, Highwoods, Little Snowy, Judith, and Bears Paw Mountains will see the greatest impacts from this storm. Prepare for dangerous to impossible travel over mountain passes in central Montana this weekend.
In the lower elevations, most areas will receive 1-4 inches of snowfall. The only exception will be for the foothills and plains immediately adjacent to the mountain ranges, which could see 5-10 inches of snowfall. This includes many areas along Highway 200 from Belt to Lewistown.
Otherwise, it will be mostly cloudy to overcast, with highs in the mid to upper 20s and low to mid 30s. Saturday will be breezy, with calmer winds expected on Sunday. Conditions will clear on Monday as an upper-level ridge builds into the Pacific Northwest, initiating a warming trend for next week with plentiful sunshine across the plains. However, valley inversions will form, leading to fog, low clouds, and colder temperatures in Helena.
