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Weekend storm coming as Utah County mountain snowpack levels remain below average

By Jacob Nielson - | Jan 31, 2025

Jacob Nielson, Daily Herald

A mountain peak east of Provo is pictured Friday, Jan. 31, 2025.

Below-average snowpack this season in Northern Utah may be boosted by a large snowstorm coming Saturday, though the heaviest snow likely won’t hit Utah County.

A winter storm warning was placed by the National Weather Service from 11 p.m. Friday to 8 p.m. Monday for much of the Wasatch Mountains, with 1-3 feet of snow anticipated for the Wasatch range north of Interstate 80.

Further south, the storm is expected to be less impactful, though, as Solitude Ski Resort is forecasted to receive just 1-3 inches Saturday, according to the National Weather Service, while North Fork Ridge could get 2-5 inches.

Any snow is nice, but more consistent weather is needed to boost the overall snowpack, said Michael Sanchez of the Utah Division of Water Resources, or UDWR.

“It’ll be good, but it’s not going to be enough,” Sanchez said. “Just as far as our statewide snowpack, I think it’s around 77% of normal, which isn’t looking great. We just haven’t seen a ton of precipitation in the last little bit. So it’s going to be welcome. We love snow.”

The snowpack level for much of the Wasatch Mountains was 78% of the median amount as of Friday, according to UDWR.

Some areas in Utah County are lower.

The Timpanogos Divide is at 56% of its median snowpack, per the Colorado Basin River Forecast Center, while Sundance Ski Resort says it has a snowpack of 36 inches 47 inches below its average of 83 inches.

The shortage hasn’t deterred Sundance from operating near capacity this season, though.

Sundance spokesperson Nick Como said 94% of the resort’s terrain was open as of Friday and the groomed runs are in good condition.

Sundance experienced freezing temperatures for most of December, which Como said helped the resort make snow and get running near full capacity for the holiday season.

“We had 70% or 80% of our mountain open in time for the Christmas holiday,” he said. “And that percentage was, I believe, the highest in Utah for the holidays of the percentage of terrain open, and a lot of that was thanks to snow-making firepower, our snow-making team, and the cold temperatures from mother nature.”

Como added that most of the storms have come on the weekend, which have resulted in fresh powder for the heavier crowds.

He is eager that the weekend’s storm, followed by a mid-week storm, will strengthen the snowpack.

“A little bit behind average,” Como said, “but one or two storms could make up the difference. We’re on the right track of being able to hit average if we have a strong February and a strong March.”

Roughly 95% of the state’s water supply comes from snowpack, according to the UDWR, filling the state’s reservoirs for agricultural and municipal use.

Though Utah is below its average snowpack numbers, the reservoir numbers are more positive.

As of Jan. 16, the state’s reservoirs collectively were at 77% capacity, which is 20% higher than average, thanks to above-normal snowpacks the past two seasons, UDWR said. Deer Creek Reservoir is at 80% capacity.

Additionally, current water flow numbers are near par at two of the major rivers that flow into Utah Lake.

Connor Rockey, a hydrologist at the Colorado Basin River Forecast Center, said water supply in the Provo River is “at certain points about normal to a bit below normal,” while the Spanish Fork River is “right at the median, below average.”