'Juneuary' Hits Northern Rockies as Nearly 6 Inches of Snow Falls at Utah Ski Area

Linda Lam

Published: June 30, 2020

The calendar may say it's the end of June, but summer snow is making for some wintry scenes in parts of the northern Rockies.

Several inches of snow piled up in some of the higher elevations of Utah, Idaho, Montana, Colorado and the Cascades early this week, leading some in social media to use the term "Juneuary" because of the weather more becoming of January in June.

But even though it may seem strange, snow can fall in June and even early July in the higher elevations of the West.

(MORE: When the Last Snow Typically Falls)

Estimated Snowfall

This most recent round of snowy and cold conditions is due to an omega block pattern that developed early this week. The jet stream plunged southward over the West, allowing colder than average temperatures and wet weather to return to parts of the region.

One of those spots that experienced chilly and snowy conditions was a ski area near Alta, Utah.

Accumulating snow fell at Alta Monday, the first time accumulating snow had occurred on any June 29 there in records dating to 1970, according to the National Weather Service. The Alta area picked up close to 6 inches of snow, as of midday Monday.

The late June snow led to scenes more familiar in winter than summer.

Cold temperatures accompanied this snow. Alta, Utah, only eached 57 degrees on Monday, which tied its daily record for coldest high temperature. Downtown Salt Lake City shattered its previous daily record low of 55 degrees on Monday when it dropped to 45 degrees. It also set a new daily record for the coldest high for the date of 66 degrees.

In neighboring Idaho, Twin Falls set a daily record low on Monday when temperatures dipped to 41 degrees.

Snow also accumulated in the higher elevations of Idaho early this week, including at Galena Summit, which is a mountain pass at an elevation of 8,701 feet.

Nearby, snow was observed at the Smiley Creek Airport on Monday. A bit farther north, an estimated 8 inches of snow fell near Yellowjacket, Idaho, as of early Monday.

A light coating of snow accumulated on the road at Lost Trail Pass near the border of Montana and Idaho thanks to some higher snowfall rates. Winter weather advisories were posted for parts of the region through Monday morning.

On Tuesday morning, light snow was spotted farther south in the Rockies near Grand Junction, Colorado. Tuesday is the last day for locations to add to their the 2019-20 snow season total, which ends each season on June 30.

Snow didn't just fall in the Rockies from this most recent cold pattern.

Parts of the Cascades also saw late June snow. On Sunday, a bit of snow accumulated at Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood in Oregon.

The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.

The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.