Snow Squall Warning 2, NWS Spokane, WA

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Spokane WA
359 PM PST Fri Dec 26 2025

.KEY MESSAGES...

- Moderate to heavy snow over mountain passes Friday into Friday
  night.
- Snow levels crashing Friday evening with potential for light
  snow on the Palouse and in valleys of Northeastern Washington
  and North Idaho.
- Drier and colder Saturday into early next week. Gusty north
  winds down the Okanogan Valley Saturday.

&&

.SYNOPSIS...
There will be increasing chances for snow across the Inland
Northwest Friday afternoon into early Saturday, especially in
Idaho and eastern third of Washington. Moderate to heavy snow
will impact travel over the mountain passes. Winds will be gusty
at times into Saturday. Much cooler temperatures arrive
Saturday with the first taste of true winter air. Seasonal
temperatures and dry conditions settle into the region early
next week.

&&

.DISCUSSION...
Friday afternoon through Saturday: Active winter weather will
continue across the Inland Northwest Friday afternoon through
Saturday morning as a cold front sweeps through the region from
the northwest, driving snow levels lower and producing another
band of precipitation. Precip with this second band is expected
to start as a mix of rain and snow in the lowlands but will
quickly transition to all snow as the cold front brings down
snow levels. In addition to lowering snow levels, the cold front
will bring an increase in winds with gusts ranging from 25 to
40 mph. With gusty winds, snow showers, and instability, there
is a risk for snow squalls along this band which could change
road conditions rapidly. We will be monitoring this closely
Friday evening and overnight.

Areas in the lee of the Cascades will miss out on much of the
precipitation with chances for lowland snow confined to the
Idaho Panhandle, Northeastern WA, and extending over the WA/ID
border along the US 195 corridor. Lowland areas of North Idaho
(except the L-C Valley), the Palouse (Pullman to Rockford), and
far Northeastern WA have a 30 to 60 percent chance of seeing
more than an inch of snow by Saturday morning. Forecast amounts
are less than an inch for locations like Spokane, Davenport,
and Republic. For much of Friday night, periods of moderate to
heavy snow will impact the passes creating very challenging
travel conditions.

Even for places where snow does not accumulate on the
roadway, travel conditions may still be very slick Saturday
morning due to moisture from precipitation freezing on the
surface as temperatures drop through Friday night.

Much colder air will flood into the region from the north and northwest
Friday night into Saturday with skies clearing and morning snow
showers tapering off from northwest to southeast. Blustery
northerly winds will channel down the Okanogan Valley, bringing gusts
up to 40 mph. Gusts of 20 to 30 mph will spread into the Basin.
High temperatures on Saturday with only reach the teens and 20s
across the north and 30s in the southern Basin and L-C Valley
but it will feel colder given the wind chills. The first real
taste of winter is about to arrive. Clearing overnight Saturday
into Sunday morning will result in lows dropping into the teens
for most locations with the more sheltered northern valleys
(especially those with fresh snow) dipping into the single
digits.

Sunday through Thursday: There is increasing confidence for a
ridge of high pressure to setup over the region Sunday through
Tuesday delivering stable and dry weather conditons and largely
dry conditions. Weather impacts will be very low outside of
morning fog and black ice. Around 70% of the ensembles begin to
shift the ridge axis eastward Wednesday which increases to 90%
or higher by Thursday/Friday with the arrival of a cool, Pacific
trough. /Fewkes

&&

.AVIATION...
00Z TAFs: A cold front will usher in a second, lighter band of
rain and snow, moving through around 01-02Z. In terms of type of
precipitation, KGEG/KCOE/KEAT have the best chance of starting
out as snow and staying snow. Other TAF sites
(KSFF/KPUW/KLWS/KMWH) are showing better chances of
precipitation beginning as rain and then transitioning to snow
around 07Z. HREF has been much too optimistic about ceilings
over the last week, so stayed with lower ceilings through the
end of this forecast period and areas of morning fog formation
for KGEG/KSFF/KCOE. With temperatures lowering below freezing,
could present as freezing fog as well. Overall, anticipate
restrictions in ceilings as a band of precipitation moves
through and continued lower ceilings for KGEG/KSFF/KCOE as fog
forms.

.FORECAST CONFIDENCE AND/OR ALTERNATE SCENARIOS: Moderate
confidence in precipitation type and transition from rain to
snow for KSFF/KPUW/KLWS/KMWH. Moderate confidence in timing for
precipitation band. Low to moderate confidence in fog formation
for KGEG/KSFF/KCOE. Reasoning for low is that HREF favors
ceilings clearing out after the band moves through, but HREF has
struggled with ceilings staying low, so will see how that turns
out. /AS

-----------------------

Confidence descriptors:
Low - Less than a 30 percent chance
Moderate - 30 to 70 percent chance
High - Greater than a 70 percent chance

For additional probabilistic information for NWS Spokane
airports,please refer to the Aviation Dashboard on our
webpage: https:/www.weather.gov/otx/avndashboard

&&

.Preliminary Point Temps/PoPs...
Spokane        23  30  17  28  20  32 /  90  10   0   0   0   0
Coeur d'Alene  23  29  13  28  20  33 / 100  20   0   0   0   0
Pullman        26  30  17  29  21  32 /  90  50   0   0   0   0
Lewiston       33  36  23  33  25  35 /  90  50   0   0   0   0
Colville       18  23  14  24  17  29 /  90   0   0   0   0  10
Sandpoint      20  25  13  24  17  29 / 100  20   0   0   0  10
Kellogg        23  28  13  28  20  35 / 100  60   0  10   0   0
Moses Lake     24  33  18  32  22  34 /  30   0   0   0   0   0
Wenatchee      25  33  20  30  23  32 /  30   0   0   0   0   0
Omak           17  22  15  25  19  28 /  30   0   0   0   0   0

&&

.OTX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WA...Winter Weather Advisory until 10 AM PST Saturday for Northeast
     Blue Mountains-Spokane Area-Washington Palouse.
     Winter Weather Advisory until 10 PM PST this evening for
     Western Chelan County.
ID...Winter Weather Advisory until 10 AM PST Saturday for Central
     Panhandle Mountains-Coeur d'Alene Area-Idaho Palouse-
     Lewis and Southern Nez Perce Counties.

&&

Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Spokane WA
452 PM PST Fri Dec 26 2025

IDZ001-WAZ037-270330-
Northern Panhandle-Northeast Mountains-
452 PM PST Fri Dec 26 2025

Snow is increasing across northeastern Washington and North Idaho
this evening. A wide variation in surface temperatures suggest the
main impacts for snow accumulations on the roadways will occur
above 2000 feet though local cold pockets along US 2 near Newport,
Oldtown, and Priest River will bring the potential for snow
accumulations below 2000 feet. Snow accumulations will vary
between 1 and 4 inches across the area. Motorists should be
prepared for changing road conditions during the evening commute
and into Friday night transitioning from wet to snow covered
roads. Temperatures will continue to fall overnight with
increasing likelihood for icy conditions by Saturday morning for
any untreated surfaces.