944 
WWUS85 KMSO 302145
SABFCA

NORTHWEST MONTANA BACKCOUNTRY FORECAST
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT
245 PM MST THU JAN 30 2003

DISCUSSION...AN ACTIVE WEATHER PATTERN WILL PERSIST OVER THE AREA AS
ANOTHER WEATHER SYSTEM WILL MOVE INTO THE REGION LATE TONIGHT. WARM
AND MOIST AIR WILL PROVIDE FOR SNOW BY DAYBREAK WITH RAIN AND SNOW AT
THE LOWER ELEVATIONS. THE BEST ACCUMULATING SNOW WILL BE EARLY IN
THE MORNING FRIDAY. SNOW LEVEL WILL BE DIFFICULT TO DETERMINE AS THE
TEMPERATURES WILL BE HOVERING NEAR 32 DEGREES THROUGH MUCH OF THE
4000-6000FT LAYER. SOME SNOWS MAY LINGER INTO SATURDAY...BUT THE
ATMOSPHERE WILL DRY OUT SUNDAY...LEAVING ONLY ISOLATED SNOW
SHOWERS.

FRI...SNOW...WITH RAIN IN THE LOWER ELEVATIONS. WINDY AT RIDGETOPS.
      TEMPERATURES COOLING IN THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS DURING THE DAY.
SAT...MOSTLY CLOUDY. AREAS OF RAIN AND SNOW...TURNING TO ISOLATED TO
      SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS. LOCALLY BRISK IN THE MOUNTAINS.
SUN...PARTLY TO MOSTLY CLOUDY. ISOLATED SNOW SHOWERS. LOCALLY BRISK
      IN THE MOUNTAINS.

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            MAX    WIND        PRECIPITATION         SNOW LEVEL (FT)
            TEMP               TYPE   AMOUNT         5 AM     5 PM
4000-6000 FT --------------------------------------------------------
FRI...      34-44 WSW 12-22 RAIN/SNOW 2-5 INCHES     5500     5000
SAT...      34-44   W  8-18    SNOW   1-3 INCHES     4000     4000
SUN...      29-39   W  7-17    SNOW   0-1 INCHES     SURFACE SURFACE

6000-8000 FT --------------------------------------------------------
FRI...      29-36   W 20-35    SNOW   3-7 INCHES
SAT...      24-34 WNW 12-22    SNOW   2-5 INCHES
SUN...      24-34  NW 15-25    SNOW   1-2 INCHES
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