Right on time, Blizzard on Beartooth Highway…

There’s still a week of summer left in Wyoming, according to the calendar. But September snow is already falling on Yellowstone National Park and the highest points of the Cowboy State.

Photographer Dave Bell of Pinedale was traveling in northwest Wyoming last Thursday when he decided to take the Beartooth Highway to Red Lodge. As soon as he reached the 10,947-foot summit, he found himself facing a blizzard.

“When I got to the top, it was panic,” he said. “There was a complete whiteout for about 45 minutes. You couldn’t see anything. It was a big snow flurry.”

Bell said the snow removal was significant enough that a snowplow was already clearing the road before the snow removal was even complete.

But once the blizzard passed, the summit was “strikingly beautiful.”

“All the Beartooths and Absarokas were completely white,” he said. “It was a wonderful day.”

Similar snowstorms hit Yellowstone overnight Thursday into Friday, another sign that the change of seasons is fast approaching. Summer is almost over, and the snow will soon linger.

On time

Bell may have witnessed the first significant snowfall of the season on the Beartooth Highway. That would coincide perfectly with the higher elevations of northwest Wyoming, which typically turn white by mid-September.

“It’s pretty common,” said Noah Myers, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service Office in Riverton. “As we get into fall, these weather systems get a little bit colder and the colder air gets a little bit further south, especially in Yellowstone and along the Beartooth Highway. It’s not uncommon to have snow up there this time of year.”

Snowfall is possible this time of year, but Myers said it’s too early for accumulations. It’s still too warm for snow to settle in most of Wyoming, and even snow in the highest mountains tends to melt quickly in September.

“Temperatures are still in the 40s on the Beartooth Highway, and it doesn’t look like it’s going to be particularly cold next week,” he said. “Even if we get a little snow up there, it may eventually melt again. That’s pretty typical for this time of year, too.”

That’s the seasonal pattern Bell observed on the Beartooth Highway. Although the snow fell heavily and hard for nearly an hour, most of it had melted by the time he left.

“Beartooth Lake had a light dusting of snow when I went across in the morning, but when I turned around and came back down, there was no snow,” he said. “I saw four or five guys on motorcycles near the first peak who had to wait for the snow to melt before they could leave. I have no idea what they were thinking.”

Proceed with caution

The snow in Yellowstone and on the Beartooth Highway is not a clear sign of a change in season. Wyoming is likely to avoid the first wave of winter for at least another month.

Thursday’s snowfall, however, should serve as a warning to anyone considering crossing Wyoming’s high-elevation passes. The first snow of the season fell on Togwotee Pass before the end of August.

“Our official response is that people should be wary of mountain passes all year round (weather-wise),” Myer said. “That’s especially true in September. If you spend a lot of time in Yellowstone in September, there’s going to be snow at some point. And that’s going to be true from September through next summer, really.”

Myers noted that several communities in western Wyoming have experienced their first frost. Jackson Hole and several communities in Lincoln and Sublette counties have already reported their first nighttime frosts.

First forecasts for autumn

The forecast for next week calls for widespread precipitation across Wyoming. Myers’ analysis concludes that while temperatures won’t be noticeably cooler next week, most of the state has a greater chance of precipitation during that time.

“We can’t say exactly how much rain we’re going to get,” he said. “We can say that the systems that come through Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and maybe one over the weekend will promote pretty widespread precipitation.”

September 22 is the official autumnal equinox, the first day of fall in the Northern Hemisphere. Based on what is being observed at NWS Riverton, Myers believes that fall will be felt on the first day of fall in Wyoming.

“Right now it looks like it’s going to be a little bit cooler toward the end of the week,” he said. “That can and will change, but these systems could be the beginning of more persistent snow in the higher elevations, meaning it’s going to stick around.”

After his experience on the Beartooth Highway, Bell had different predictions for Wyoming residents. Hunters should take note.

“I can tell you one thing: It’s going to get the animals moving, for sure,” he said. “There was a lot of elk activity around Beartooth Lake that morning. A lot. The fall rut is underway.”

Contact Andrew Rossi at [email protected]

Andrew Rossi can be contacted at [email protected].