More snow? Slick roads? Cold temps? Here’s how much longer winter will last in Boise
Punxsutawney Phil, the weather-predicting groundhog, poked his head out of the ground about a month ago and predicted another six weeks of winter. We somewhat joked about the yearly tradition and looked at the chances that America’s favorite groundhog was right — it turns out Phil is more often correct than incorrect.
And it looks like he’s done it again, at least for Idaho’s forecast.
It’s been a cold and wet February for Boise — the average temperature this past month was 35.2 degrees, 2 degrees below average for this time of the year. And it’s set to continue into March.
“As far as our long-term weather models suggest, we’re not nearing warmer temperatures and more spring-like conditions until likely at least about a week away,” Sophia Adams, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Boise, told the Idaho Statesman on Monday.
Boise received just over a quarter of an inch of snow over the weekend, and although no significant accumulation is expected, the snow will continue to fall in the City of Trees over the next couple of days.
Rain will transition over to snow on Monday night, and light snowfall will continue into Tuesday morning, according to Weather Service forecasts. Less than half an inch of snow is expected, but slick driving conditions could be an issue Tuesday morning, Adams said.
“Pretty minimal accumulations of snow, but it could make parts of the road a little bit dangerous to drive on,” Adams said. “Kind of similar to what we’ve been seeing the last few days with patchy areas of ice and slush. So that’s going to be really the main impact in the Treasure Valley.”
The Weather Service recommends avoiding cruise control early in the morning because wet roads can have unpredictable slick spots. The agency also reminds drivers to leave extra distance between their car and the vehicles in front of them, especially if it’s a truck or snow plow.
Adams said some of the higher peaks in the Boise Mountains would receive up to 14 inches of snow through Wednesday morning.
Boise will enjoy a calmer and sunnier Wednesday and Thursday, but a 30% chance of snow showers returns Thursday night. Temperatures will also remain cold — Boise’s highest temperature this week is on Monday afternoon when it’ll hit 46 degrees, which is still 5 degrees colder than usual for late February.
An upper-level cold front will then move into the area from the Washington and Oregon coast, dropping temps to as low as 19 degrees by Wednesday night. The average low temperature in Boise for late February is about 31 degrees.
“If this continues into March, it definitely would be colder than normal,” Adams said. “Not great for the region; for the snow lovers, it’s good, but for the people wanting spring and warmer temperatures, that’s likely going to be a little bit longer before we see that.”
