Weather
A warm, moisture-packed pattern keeps the Pacific Northwest in steady mountain snow through midweek, with the biggest push focused Sunday through Tuesday. Snow levels spend a lot of time in the 3,000 to 4,000 feet range early on, so lower elevations see wetter snow or mixed precipitation at times, while mid and upper mountain terrain keeps stacking. By Tuesday night into Wednesday, snow levels trend lower and snow quality improves, followed by lighter, more showery add-ons through late week. Heading into next weekend and early March, the signal shifts toward fewer organized storms and more dry breaks, with any late-period systems looking less certain and more hit-or-miss.
Sunday through Tuesday stays active with a prolonged wet stretch that repeatedly refreshes precipitation and keeps snow levels elevated. The individual models line up well on the overall idea and timing of this stretch, but they vary on where the heaviest core sets up and how much of the precipitation falls during the warmest snow-level phases. Expect the best accumulation to favor upper mountain terrain, with snow levels frequently hovering near 3,000 to 4,000 feet before trending down late. Snow-to-liquid ratios through this period generally run around 8-12:1, so snow quality skews dense, especially during the warmest bursts. Winds also look notable at exposed ridgelines, with the strongest gust potential centered in the Oregon Cascades during the heart of the storm.
Tuesday night into Wednesday brings the most meaningful shift in ski conditions as colder air filters in and lowers snow levels closer to 2,000 to 2,500 feet. The individual models converge on the cooling trend and the continued showery precipitation, which supports solid confidence in improving coverage and better preservation at lower elevations. Snow-to-liquid ratios tick up into the 10-14:1 range for many resorts, with occasional 14+:1 windows that should ski noticeably lighter when showers line up. After that, Thursday and Friday look more like intermittent, lighter reloads than a true storm cycle, and model spread increases on whether any single wave organizes enough to matter. Looking toward late next weekend into early March, the broader pattern leans warmer and less stormy overall, so any new snow opportunities appear more dependent on weaker, fast-moving disturbances.
Resort Forecast Totals (Sun 2/22 – Wed 2/25)
- Timberline – 22″-31″
- Mt Baker – 20″-28″
- Stevens Pass – 17″-23″
- Mt Bachelor – 16″-22″
- Snoqualmie Pass – 14″-20″
- Whistler – 15″-20″
- Crystal Mountain – 13″-19″
