Not a nice Christmas Day along the Hi-Line east of I-15 today as it was cold, icy, and foggy. Elsewhere, it was a nice day today with partly to mostly sunny skies, mostly dry conditions, and patchy fog. Roads were very icy this morning from last night’s freezing rain, but road conditions have improved throughout the day, and roads right now are in good shape for most. It was also a warm Christmas Day south of the Hi-Line and along the Hi-Line west of I-15 as highs were in the 40s and low to mid 50s in a lot of locations. For Great Falls, this was the second warmest Christmas on record, while in Billings, Bozeman, Butte, Dillon, Lewistown, and Livingston this was the warmest Christmas on record.
Here is the detailed forecast:
There will continue to be areas of fog around tonight, generally along the eastern half of the Hi-Line and in the valleys, and some of that fog will be dense with visibility at or below a quarter mile. This will also be freezing fog, so light ice/snow accumulations are possible, which means roads will be a bit slick. A DENSE FOG ADVISORY is in effect for northeastern Montana until 8am Friday.
Where there is not fog tonight, it will be partly cloudy. There are also going to be some scattered rain, freezing rain, and snow showers around tonight, especially in the mountains and along the Hi-Line. Little to no ice and snow accumulation is expected. Lows tonight will be in the 20s and low to mid 30s. It is also going to be breezy tonight along the Rocky Mountain Front and in/around Cascade County, Glacier County, and Judith Basin County as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph.
There are going to be some scattered rain, freezing rain, and snow showers around tomorrow, generally around Helena, in the higher terrain, and along the Hi-Line, as another disturbance passes through Montana. It is also going to be partly to mostly cloudy tomorrow. Light snow and ice accumulations are possible in locations that do see some of this precipitation tomorrow. Highs tomorrow will be in the 30s along the Hi-Line and the 40s and low 50s south of the Hi-Line. It will be gusty tomorrow along the Rocky Mountain Front with 10-30 mph sustained winds, and it will be breezy tomorrow in western and central portions of north-central Montana with 10-25 mph sustained winds and gusts over 40 mph at times.
An arctic cold front will work its way through our area Friday night and Saturday. This arctic cold front will bring much colder air into the state. Highs on Saturday will be in the teens and 20s, but these highs will occur during the early morning, with falling temperatures throughout the day. By sunset on Saturday, temperatures will be in the -0s, 0s, and 10s, and lows Saturday night will be in the -10s, -0s, and 0s. Blustery conditions are also expected Friday night and Saturday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 25 mph, and wind gusts over 40 mph are possible. Wind chills will be below zero after the cold front passes through, and may get as low as -35°, especially along the Hi-Line.
There are also going to be scattered snow showers around late Friday night and on Saturday, especially during the morning, as the cold front passes through. Up to 3” of snow is possible, with most locations receiving less than 2” of snow. This snow will make roads pretty slick on Saturday, so please be careful if you are going to be traveling anywhere. Higher snow amounts are expected in Glacier and along the Rocky Mountain Front where 3-12” of snow is expected, and this area is under a WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY from 8am Friday until 2pm/5pm Saturday.
Sunday will be mostly sunny and dry. It will still be cold, but not as cold as Saturday, as highs are going to be in the teens and 20s (single digits in northeastern Montana). It will also be breezy in some areas on Sunday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph.
Monday through Wednesday will be partly to mostly cloudy and mostly dry as an upper-level ridge is going to be in control of our weather. It is also going to be breezy on these three days as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 25 mph. Warmer temperatures will also return for these three days as highs are going to be in the 20s and low to mid 30s in northeastern Montana and the 40s and mid to upper 30s in north-central and central Montana.
The first day of 2026 (Thursday) will be overcast with a few scattered snow showers around. It is also going to be colder as highs are going to be back in the 20s and 30s (teens in northeastern Montana).
