April was coldest on record for Kalispell
MATT BALDWIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 2 years, 6 months AGO
A snow-capped Mt. Cannon in Glacier National Park. (Jeremy Weber/Daily Inter Lake)
Matt Baldwin is regional editor for Hagadone Media Montana. He is a graduate of the University of Montana's School of Journalism. He can be reached at 406-758-4447 or mbaldwin@dailyinterlake.com. | May 3, 2022 11:00 AM
With an average temperature of 36.3 degrees, last month was the coldest April on record in Kalispell.
According to data from the National Weather Service, Kalispell’s average temperature for April was 6.4 degrees below normal. The average low for the month was 24.1, which was also 6.4 degree below normal.
The previous coldest April on record was in 1982.
The coldest day last month was April 16 when thermometers dipped to 14 at the weather station at Glacier Park International Airport. Temperatures only cracked the 60-degree mark twice, with the warmest day on April 25 at 66 degrees.
April was slightly drier than normal in Kalispell, with 0.98 inches of precipitation recorded at the GPIA weather station. Easter Sunday was the snowiest day, with 1 inch officially reported at the airport.
Butte and Missoula also flirted with their records for the coldest April.
The Mining City had an average temperature of 32.4 last month, which was 6.7 degree below normal. The coldest April on record there was in 1975 when the average temperature was 24.9.
In the Garden City, the average temperature last month was 40.2, which is 4.1 degrees below normal.
THE COLD weather has helped preserve Northwest Montana's mountain snowpack.
The Flathead River Basin snowpack was at 112% of average on Tuesday, while the Kootenai was at 114%.
The Flathead’s snow water equivalent typically peaks around April 14. This year the peak came on April 22.
As of Tuesday, the snow depth on Flattop Mountain at 6,300 feet in Glacier National Park was 111 inches. Noisy Basin in the Swan Range was holding 100 inches of snow, while Stahl Peak in the northern Whitefish Range reported 105 inches.
The extended forecast shows continued colder-than-normal weather for much of the West. Locations in Northwest Montana can expect temperatures below normal through at least May 12. It is also predicted to be wetter than average across the region.
A mix of rain and snow is on tap for the Flathead Valley this Mother’s Day weekend, with highs in the 40s and lows in the 30s.