In some parts of the country, the first day of summer means flip-flops, short sleeves, and sunglasses. In Montana, it could mean anything. It’s not uncommon to hear of snow falling in the Treasure State in June, and if you’ve been in West Yellowstone recently, you may have seen it firsthand.
West Yellowstone is one of the gateways to Yellowstone National Park.
S Kaya / Flickr The area averages 182 inches of snow per year - a far cry from the national average of 26 inches - and while summers are often bright and sunny, they’re still snowy on occasion.
On June 21, the first official day of summer 2019, news broke that it was snowing at Yellowstone National Park.
Josef Hanning / Flickr It can (and does) snow any time of the year at Yellowstone National Park, but it was also snowing in the city of West Yellowstone.
It stayed snowy in West Yellowstone well into spring, which is pretty much par for the course; however, no one expected eight inches to fall on the first day of summer.
West Yellowstone Chamber Montana Facebook While this much snowfall isn’t completely unheard of in late June, you’ll typically only see a small dusting of white powder that melts almost as soon as it hits the ground.
Of course, none of this should be too surprising, as West Yellowstone is a mere 90 miles west of Montana’s snowiest city.
Richard Binhammer / Flickr Cooke City averages 202 inches of snow per year, and it’s certainly not all falling in December and January.
Yellowstone National Park is known for its brutal winters as well.
Brent Schneeman / Flickr The park tends to get around 150 inches of annual snowfall, and many parts of it are unreachable in the winter.
Of course, the West Yellowstone area is visually stunning in any season, and with or without snow on the ground…
Visit West Yellowstone Facebook
…but with summer about to be in full swing, we’re ready for it to look more like this for a while.
Visit West Yellowstone Facebook Snow isn’t in the forecast for West Yellowstone in the near future… however, we all know that in Montana, that doesn’t mean much.
Regardless of how much we’re yearning for warm weather, we do have to admit that we’ll be grateful for any and all precipitation when we’re in the midst of wildfire season – anything that helps protect our natural splendor is a good thing!
S Kaya / Flickr
The area averages 182 inches of snow per year - a far cry from the national average of 26 inches - and while summers are often bright and sunny, they’re still snowy on occasion.
Josef Hanning / Flickr
It can (and does) snow any time of the year at Yellowstone National Park, but it was also snowing in the city of West Yellowstone.
West Yellowstone Chamber Montana Facebook
While this much snowfall isn’t completely unheard of in late June, you’ll typically only see a small dusting of white powder that melts almost as soon as it hits the ground.
Richard Binhammer / Flickr
Cooke City averages 202 inches of snow per year, and it’s certainly not all falling in December and January.
Brent Schneeman / Flickr
The park tends to get around 150 inches of annual snowfall, and many parts of it are unreachable in the winter.
Visit West Yellowstone Facebook
Snow isn’t in the forecast for West Yellowstone in the near future… however, we all know that in Montana, that doesn’t mean much.
If you’ll be in West Yellowstone this summer, there’s no guarantee of seeing snow. But if you check out the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center while you’re in town, you’ll certainly have a great time.
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