![Are Ready for a Wet and Cold Missoula Winter?](https://townsquare.media/site/119/files/2021/10/attachment-RS42573_GettyImages-628875450-scr.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Are Ready for a Wet and Cold Missoula Winter?
If you enjoyed Montana's winter weather last year, expect more of the same this year. National Weather Service Meteorologist Marty Whitmore says Montanans should prepare for wet and cold conditions.
“There is more confidence in a La Niña winter and it is really a back to back winter for that scenario,” Whitmore said. “That is when the sea surface temperatures are cooler than normal in the equatorial pacific. That typically gives us a storm track that puts quite a bit of moisture over western Montana and it tends to make us a little bit cooler in a northwesterly flow.”
According to Whitmore, this type of winter weather could not come at a better time for western Montana.
![Newstalk KGVO 1290 AM & 98.3 FM logo](https://townsquare.media/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/KGVOAM.png?w=100)
“For an area like Montana and all of the west, it has been in such a drought condition that it is a welcome thing to have a pattern that typically gives a pretty good mountain snow pack,” Whitmore said. “The valleys are usually near normal to maybe above normal, but it is a little bit more consistent in the mountains.”
Whitmore said that a La Niña winter is expected, but that doesn’t mean it is a guarantee.
“There have been a few La Niña’s in the past that didn’t work out that way and they ended up being dryer than normal,” Whitmore said. “Like anything in forecast or climatology, it is far from certain, but it looks pretty good for the northwest.”
Whitmore emphasized that arctic outbreaks always have a significant impact on just how cold it can get.
"A La Niña forecast will yield a cooler than normal winter, but in western Montana, it is those arctic outbreaks that end up dictating whether we have a cold or a warmer than normal season,” Whitmore said. “If you have a higher number of those or if you can get a cold snap and it sticks around for a while, that can be problematic. The nice thing about La Niña is with that relatively active storm pattern that you would expect under a La Niña, if we do get an arctic, it will probably be eroded away by an incoming weather system within a day or two.”
High temperatures in Missoula have already dropped down to the low 50s and high 40s. On and off showers are expected the rest of the week.
8 Great Ways To Spend Halloween In Missoula This Year
TIPS: Here's how you can prepare for power outages
More From Newstalk KGVO 1290 AM & 98.3 FM
![Daines, Gianforte Pledge Resources for Montana Flood Victims](http://townsquare.media/site/990/files/2022/06/attachment-Credit-Jillann-Knutson.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Flooding Monday, Near Triple Digits By Friday in Montana](http://townsquare.media/site/990/files/2022/06/attachment-Credit-Dan-Stusek.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![ALERT: Butte, Bozeman Area Roads Could Get Very Icy Friday Night](http://townsquare.media/site/13/files/2021/11/attachment-Bozeman-Pass-camera-Nov-11-snow.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Will Missoula Feel the Pain of Montana Snowplow Driver Shortage?](http://townsquare.media/site/117/files/2021/11/attachment-kim-giseok-tU0jPrumTPQ-unsplash.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Ravalli County To Drop ‘Open Burning’ Ban Sept. 27](http://townsquare.media/site/118/files/2021/09/attachment-open_burn2.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Montana is in “Wait and See Mode” When it Comes to Summer Drought](http://townsquare.media/site/119/files/2021/05/RS25474_GettyImages-468830826.jpeg?w=980&q=75)
![MPD Responded to 50 Crashes in Just 24 Hours After the Severe Weather Event](http://townsquare.media/site/119/files/2019/01/GettyImages-885541870.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Court Victory for Montana Students With Special Needs](http://townsquare.media/site/119/files/2024/07/attachment-RS47253_GettyImages-494312894-scr-2.jpg?w=980&q=75)
![Stay Cool Missoula: Tips From Disaster Services Director](http://townsquare.media/site/119/files/2024/07/attachment-RS27921_GettyImages-1011404062-scr.jpg?w=980&q=75)