As a wildfire grows near western Montana’s MacDonald Pass Thursday amid unusually hot, dry and windy June conditions, powerful thunderstorms are teeing up for Friday. Those storms could pack gusty winds and possibly record setting rain and hail across a wide swath of the state.
That’s just the appetizer for the wild weather the National Weather Service is predicting for this weekend.
How wild? A major snowstorm could grip Glacier National Park, including Logan Pass. The park’s high elevations will pick up anywhere from 3 inches to more than a foot of snow. The alpine sections of Going-to-the-Sun Road may temporarily close if conditions turn dangerous. Visitors are urged to plan ahead for the inclement weather.
Unseasonably cool temperatures will descend on the entire state, with most highs climbing only into the upper 50 to 60s this weekend. That’s about 20 degrees cooler than normal.
Monday morning’s lows could be in the 30s. Some of the higher valleys along the Continental Divide may dip below zero.
By Monday afternoon, temperatures should rebound into the 70s with gradual warming expected through the week.
