Utah snowpack is now in great shape
Feb 8, 2024, 4:50 PM
Nihal Kariparduc, right, shovels snow as she and others build an igloo by the Mill B trailhead in Big Cottonwood Canyon on Monday, Jan. 15, 2024. New data shows Utah's snowpack has grown to over 100%. (Kristin Murphy, Deseret News)
(Kristin Murphy, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY— What a difference a month can make. Data revealed that statewide, the Utah snowpack has grown to over 100%. In some regions, it has reached over 120%.
The data means that Utah’s snowpack is exactly where it should be in comparison to the 30-year average.
“What a turnaround in 30 days,” said KSL Meteorologist Kevin Eubank. “To be able to recover like that in just a month is very very impressive.”
In early January, roughly all of Utah’s mountaintops did not have enough snow on them. The mountains of Northern Utah, depending on the location, were about 15 to 30% below seasonal norms.
Southern Utah was staring down a very uncomfortable situation. The Southwest and Escalante regions were between 50 to almost 60% below normal, meaning they hadn’t gotten half the snow they needed to anticipate a healthy snowpack in the Spring.
More to come for Utah snowpack
Eubank said we do need more snow to fall over the next two months. Now is not the time to hope the Utah snowpack stops accumulating. The state doesn’t peak until April 1, so the amount of snow we need by then is only going to rise based on historical averages.
Eubank said more snow is expected to hit the Wasatch Front Thursday night into Friday, which could leave behind a couple of inches of snow in the valleys.
“We drink this water, it’s the lifeblood of this state,” said Eubank.
