Much-Needed Mountain Snow Headed For West
California will see its coldest storm of the season beginning Sunday with feet of Sierra snow, some flooding rain, but also much-needed replenishment to a western snowpack that is record low for this time of year from the Pacific Northwest to the Southern Rockies.
What a strange winter we have seen in the West.
Sustained warmth broke records across the region. And to top it off, there was hardly any precipitation.
(MORE: Did Winter Forget The West?)
But that warm, dry pattern that lasted through much of the winter is finally breaking down.
And with that comes cooler temperatures, rain and mountain snow. That’s beneficial for much of the West. But it could become too much of a good thing in California.
It Starts Early Sunday
This more sustained period of wet weather begins early Sunday, and will last through at least Wednesday, if not Thursday.
During that time, there could be periods of locally heavy rain and showers across California and parts of the Southwest. That means there is an increasing flood threat for the state, especially across burn scars. The areas in the darker green and yellow contours on the map below show the highest chance of the heaviest rainfall during this prolonged wet period.
That includes coastal and Southern California and the Sierra foothills at elevations low enough for rain to fall.
California’s snowpack will also see a major boost. Feet of Sierra snow and some heavy snow in the Southern California mountains is likely next week. Travel in this higher terrain will become increasingly challenging, if not impossible, at times.
Despite the travel challenge, this boost in Sierra snowpack is needed, as it’s currently running only about 55% of average for this time of the year, according to the California Department of Water Resources.
Why The Shift?
Most of the winter has seen the jet stream riding well north into western Canada, then plunging southward into the East. This pattern leads to less rainfall and warmer temperatures out West.
The graphic below shows what will happen next week. The jet stream will, instead, take its sharp southward plunge into the West, leading to cooler temperatures and an influx of much-needed rain and snow.
Why Snowpack Matters
The snowpack across the West isn’t just for skiers and snowboarders. It also helps provide a freshwater source to the West in the drier months.
This is why the lack of snowfall has been so concerning. The West is dependent on snow, which they haven’t been seeing.
This map shows the status of the West’s snowpack (as measured by the water locked in the snow) compared to average as of Feb. 12, 2026.
(USDA/NRCS)
According to the National Resources Conservation Service, dozens of locations from Colorado and Utah to the Pacific Northwest have snowpack that is lowest at this time of year in at least a decade or more.
This graphic shows that Colorado is seeing its lowest snowpack on record. Feet of snowfall are needed just to reach normal levels.
(Colorado Snow Survey Products)
Rob Shackelford is a meteorologist and climate scientist at weather.com. He received his undergraduate and master’s degrees from the University of Georgia studying meteorology and experimenting with alternative hurricane forecasting tools.
