With February in the books and the a third of March now passed, the Flathead River Basin snowpack is about 88% of the median and the Kootenai River Basin about 75% of median.

Individual SNOTEL sites vary greatly as there is well-below average snow at lower elevations and while some higher elevation snowpacks are slightly above average while others are near average or below average.

In Glacier National Park, for example, the West Flattop Snotel is 91% of median, while Many Glacier is just 25% of median.

West Flattop is west of the divide at 6,280 feet while Many Glacier is east of the divide in the St. Mary basin at 4,930 feet.

There is still a few weeks for the snowpack to add snow, but by early to mid-April, most are losing snow. 

It would take a major storm to boost some places back to normal. Blacktail Mountain, for example, is just 45% of median, Grave Creek, in the upper Whitefish range is just 42% of median, while Stahl Peak, Stuart Mountain and Moss Peak are all above 100% of median, with Stuart Mountain being 115% of median.

Stuart Mountain is also the highest in elevation of all the sites, at 7,270 feet and farther south, in the Rattlesnake range north of Missoula. It most likely saw snow rather than rain as many sites saw this winter.

The winter started out warm and wet with heavy rain in December, but then January was warm and dry as was the first couple weeks of February.

It has since taken a bit of a turn, with a few wetter systems in the past few weeks, with more wet weather expected this week.

From a total precipitation standpoint, the Flathead River basin is at 111 % of the median. Snowpack is more valuable than rain, however, as it recharges streams, rivers and springs into the summer months, helping keep trout streams  cool.

In the eastern half of the state the water situation is more dire. There have already been large wildfires, including a 5,000 acre blaze in Musselshell County.

February brought well below normal precipitation (35% to 80% of median) to SNOTEL sites in northwest and central Montana, as well as the Powder and Tongue river basins. Southwest and south central Montana received near to slightly below normal monthly precipitation (90% to 100% of median). 

Water-year-to-date precipitation remains at 100% to 135% of median, thanks to the record breaking precipitation delivered by December’s atmospheric river. The full influence of this early season moisture remains to be seen. While December precipitation likely helped recharge groundwater sources and stock high elevation snowpacks, warm temperatures and the lack of valley snow coverage may reduce those benefits. This year has brought above normal temperatures to every month of the snowpack accumulation season. Drought conditions worsened in February, with 95% of the state now experiencing drought conditions. This is a drastic increase from the December 30 drought conditions, where only 52% of the state was experiencing drought.