Why Montana’s Winter Is Running Late This Year

It is close to the end of November, and if you have not noticed, there is something pretty major missing here in Montana. Take a look around. Have you picked up on it yet? Where is the snow?

We have had a few dustings this year, including that wild surprise snowfall in the middle of summer, but overall it has been unusually warm and dry. A lot of people are pointing fingers at global warming, and while that may play a role, we are not diving into that today. Instead, there is a natural weather phenomenon that is driving the lack of snowfall we are seeing for the 2025 season.

Right now, Montana is sitting at the slowest snowpack since 2017. The good news is that 2017 actually finished strong, so this slow start does not guarantee a bad winter. Still, the numbers are striking. Much of the West is sitting below 50 percent of normal snowpack levels. Here at home, most of Montana is below average. Meanwhile, parts of the northeast have seen heavy snowfall already, with the mountains looking like mid-winter conditions. And in a fun twist, North Carolina currently has two ski areas open, which is somehow more than Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, and Utah combined.

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So what is driving this odd setup? According to federal forecasters, the main culprit is La Niña. The Climate Prediction Center confirmed that La Niña strengthened over the past month as sea surface temperatures across the central and eastern equatorial Pacific continued to cool. This is part of the natural El Niño-Southern Oscillation cycle, which affects global weather patterns.

For winter, the northern Rockies and the Great Lakes region are expected to receive above average precipitation. The southern United States, especially the Southeast, is expected to be much drier than normal. This forecast covers December through February.

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