© The Weather ChannelUp to 50 inches of snow are expected to fall in Western Montana, while winter storm watches have been issued in eastern Washington, the Idaho panhandle and northwestern Wyoming
"This has the potential to be a historically significant early-season snow event," the National Weather Service in Great Falls, Montana, said.A cold front with strong winds and near-record cold air will move through Idaho and Montana on Friday. It will be followed by another low-pressure system that will stall over the region Friday night through Sunday.
With unseasonably cold air already in place, wet, heavy snow is likely from the valleys to the mountain tops.The forecast for this storm looks eerily similar to a storm that struck Montana in 1934. That storm produced prolific amounts of snow in late September over North Central Montana.
This weekend, a few inches to feet of snow could fall across the region. The impacts will start tonight along the Continental Divide.
By Monday, the mountains will have storm totals being measured in feet. Areas near Glacier National park will see two to three feet of snow.Snow won't start to accumulate in most of the valleys until Saturday night.
Since this is an early season storm and the ground is still warm, most of the first snow to fall will likely melt. In some lower elevations, it may not even accumulate.
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