Boise sets a record with ‘rare’ April snowstorm. Here’s how much snow fell and why
Boise doesn’t typically receive an inch of snow in a single snowstorm in April. In fact, it only happens about once every six years.
But Thursday morning stamped 2023 in the record books as one of those years.
Treasure Valley residents woke up to about an inch of snow Thursday, while Bogus Basin received another four inches as the ski resort’s winter wonderland continues.
It’s not the latest that Boise has received an inch of snow — that record belongs to May 2, when downtown Boise received about 4 inches in 1964. But Thursday morning’s snow did break the record for snowfall on April 13; the previous record was 0.3 inches in 2022.
The snow is a stark reminder that Boise hasn’t escaped winter just yet, despite temperatures soaring to 82 degrees on Monday — a temperature that set a record for the highest temperature in Boise for April 10.
The snow came because of a low-pressure system that brought “rare” cold air into Southern Idaho from the north, National Weather Service meteorologist Spencer Tangen told the Idaho Statesman.
“We had moisture that wrapped around the western side of that low,” Tangen said. “And a lot of times when we get that pattern, we’ll get the wind coming from the northwest hit the mountains. And that’ll help produce more precipitation in Boise.”
But the cold times won’t last. Already-warm road temperatures and an expected high of 52 degrees Thursday caused most of the snow to melt by late morning, and Boise will return to 76 degrees by Sunday.
The dramatic swings in temperature aren’t uncommon for Boise in the spring. Last May, Boise climbed to 74 degrees, plummeted to 44 degrees three days later, and then jumped to 85 degrees less than a week after that.
“Spring is a very changeable season for us,” Tangen said.
“During spring, we get the low systems that come in from the Pacific, and out ahead of them, we can get south winds, and that’ll push temperatures up,” Tangen continued. “And then a cold front can come through, and it can be significantly colder behind that cold front.”
This story was originally published April 13, 2023 at 11:26 AM.
