Winter is still a full season away, but skiers in the Flathead Valley were salivating Wednesday after Whitefish Mountain Resort recorded a rare August snowfall.
By midday, the upper 300 meters of Big Mountain were covered with a 2.5 cm thick white layer.
“It’s certainly been a strange summer with more precipitation than we’re used to, but measurable snow? This time of year? That wasn’t something we had on our bingo card,” ski resort spokesman Chad Sokol wrote on the ski resort’s snow report page.
A winter weather advisory was issued for the mountains of northwest Montana through Wednesday evening. Snowfall between 3 and 6 inches was expected in areas above 5,000 feet elevation in Glacier National Park and the Seeley Swan region.
Glacier National Park closed the Going-to-the-Sun Road over Logan Pass shortly before 2 p.m. on Wednesday.
The road was closed from Avalanche Creek to Jackson Glacier Overlook due to snow and ice.
Visitors to the park were advised to be prepared for harsh conditions.
Once the ice melts, the Park Service will reopen the road. Snow can fall on the glacier year-round, and snowstorms are fairly common in September, but not as common in August.
The Sun Road over Logan Pass is usually closed for the winter season in mid-October.
The weather will return to normal this weekend, with highs in the 30s, 5 to 10 degrees above normal. Labor Day is expected to be sunny and hot.
