Snowpack Rebounds After a Slow Start to Winter

Water year 2025 got off to a dry start in the mountains of Montana and northern Wyoming with minimal precipitation recorded across the region for the first half of October.

Moisture arrived in mid-October, but abnormally warm temperatures meant it fell primarily as rain or a mix of rain and snow, even at upper elevations. For most basins, the first snow at all elevations occurred late October. November brought a mixture of snowstorms that benefitted the mountains of southwest and northwest Montana, while drier conditions were experienced elsewhere. "

Dry conditions persisted for the first half...