Thanks to an inversion, it was cloudy today in Helena, but elsewhere, it was a beautiful, sunny day today! We also had pleasant temperatures today as highs were in the 40s and low to mid 50s. There was also little to no wind around today in most areas.
Here is the detailed forecast:
Along the Rocky Mountain Front/the Divide, the wind will increase tonight and it will be very windy later tonight and tomorrow as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 20 and 40 mph, and wind gusts over 60 mph are possible. East of the Rocky Mountain Front, the wind will increase later on tonight and it will be breezy/gusty tomorrow as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 25 mph, and wind gusts over 40 mph are possible. In the valleys and in eastern portions of north-central Montana, there is only going to be a little breeze around tonight and tomorrow.
Tonight, we are going to have mainly clear skies with a few patchy areas of fog around after midnight. It is also going to be cool tonight as lows are going to be in the mid to upper 20s and low to mid 30s. Tomorrow will be another nice day, outside of the wind, as it is going to be partly to mostly sunny and dry in north-central Montana and it is going to be mainly sunny and dry around Helena. It is also going to be mild tomorrow as highs are going to be in the mid to upper 40s and low to mid 50s.
Widespread breezy/gusty conditions are expected this weekend as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 25 mph, and wind gusts over 40 mph are possible. Outside of the wind, the weather will be really nice this weekend as we are going to have partly cloudy skies and dry conditions. It is also going to be mild this weekend as high temperatures are going to be in the 50s and upper 40s.
A cold front will then bring some moisture, colder temperatures, and more wind to the state on Monday. Highs on Monday are going to be in the 40s and upper 30s, so it will be about 10 to 15 degrees cooler than it will be this weekend. It is also going to be windy on Monday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 15 and 35 mph, and wind gusts over 50 mph are possible. There are also going to be scattered showers around on Monday as the cold front and its associated disturbance passes through the state. Initially, we will see a mixture of rain and snow showers on Monday, but the precipitation will transition over to just snow as the day goes on.
The rest of next week will feature unstable northwesterly flow aloft, which will bring colder air from Canada into the state and it will allow a few disturbances to pass through the state, providing us with chances to see some snow. On Tuesday, there are going to be some isolated snow showers around as we are going to be in between disturbances. There are then going to be some scattered snow showers around on Wednesday as another disturbance passes through the state. We are also going to have partly to mostly cloudy skies on these two days and it will be chilly as highs are going to be in the 30s.
Thanksgiving will be chilly as well as highs are going to be in the 30s. There are also going to be scattered snow showers around on Thanksgiving as yet another disturbance passes through the state.
Difficult travel conditions will be possible at times next week, especially at and above mountain pass level, so if you will be driving anywhere for the Thanksgiving holiday, make sure you keep a close eye on the forecast. In the lower elevations, roads may be slick at times, but no significant impacts are expected as of right now.
