Live snowpack across the country.

# Snow Returns to Alaska's Far North as Lower 48 Sees Modest Activity

A modest weather pattern is bringing light snowfall to scattered locations across the nation, with Alaska's Arctic region poised to receive the most significant accumulations over the next two days. While the Lower 48 has seen minimal activity in the past 24 hours—with just 2 inches reported at both Sawmill Ridge in Washington's Cascades and Vallecito in Colorado's San Juan Mountains—attention is shifting northward where a developing system promises to deliver meaningful snowfall to the North Slope.

The forecast models show Imnaviat Creek leading the charge with an expected 6 inches of accumulation, accompanied by rain/snow mix and areas of fog that will create challenging visibility conditions. This remote location along the Dalton Highway corridor sits at approximately 68.6°N latitude, where early-season snow is already establishing a 2-inch base. Just 35 miles south, Atigun Pass—the highest point on the Trans-Alaska Pipeline route at 4,800 feet elevation—is forecast to receive 4 inches amid freezing fog and mixed precipitation conditions. Even Prudhoe Bay on the Arctic coast, typically drier due to its proximity to the Beaufort Sea, could see 2 inches as moisture wraps around the system. The combination of snow and fog across this critical transportation corridor may impact operations for Alaska's North Slope energy infrastructure and create hazardous driving conditions along the Dalton Highway.

Meanwhile, the Pacific Northwest and Colorado Rockies remain in a transitional weather pattern. Sawmill Ridge's 2-inch report came despite a current base depth of 170 inches—an impressive mid-mountain snowpack that speaks to the productive winter season thus far. However, the forecast calls for haze transitioning to possible thunderstorms, indicating warmer air aloft that could threaten snow levels. Colorado's Vallecito, sitting at just a 3-inch base in the southern San Juans, received its 2 inches ahead of forecasted showers and thunderstorms that will likely fall as rain at lower elevations. For snow enthusiasts seeking the deepest powder and most active conditions, Alaska's Arctic region is unquestionably the place to watch over the next 48 hours, while skiers in the Lower 48 await the next cold front to reinvigorate their local mountains.