SALT LAKE CITY — Utah’s most popular – or least popular – four-letter word is included in the forecast.

Yes, snow is expected again this week in Utah’s highest elevations. This will be the first mountain snowfall of the season.

The National Weather Service predicts that Kings Peak, Utah’s highest elevation, could see 4 to 6 inches of snow or more, while other parts of the High Uintas could also see several inches of snow between Monday night and Tuesday evening.

Measurable snow is possible on other peaks in the state. The agency says the Upper Cottonwood Canyons have a 58% chance of seeing measurable snow. KSL meteorologist Matt Johnson said parts of the Wasatch Mountains, including the Cottonwood Canyons, could see anywhere from a thin layer of snow to a few inches of snow this week.

In general, the snow line is likely to be at around 2,600 to 2,750 meters, while isolated rain showers are expected at lower altitudes over the next few days and temperatures will drop significantly just in time for the start of astronomical autumn on Sunday.

“It’s going to feel very fall-like this week – our first full week of fall weather, so to speak,” Johnson said.

Additional precipitation is possible from another system later this week.

A seasonal start to autumn

Scattered showers are forecast for Monday afternoon and evening, but the first snowfall of the season in the mountains is due to a low pressure system moving into northern Utah from California. KSL meteorologist Devan Masciulli said the core of the system will bring moisture that will primarily affect the northern half of Utah on Tuesday morning. Weather models show that rain in the mountains will then turn to snow.

In addition to the snowfall, communities in the Wasatch Front and northern Utah Valley, such as Provo, Salt Lake, Ogden and Logan, could receive up to 1 to 3/4 inches of snow in the next few days, according to the National Weather Service. A second storm system is expected to move across Southern California into Arizona later this week, Masciulli said, and could bring additional precipitation along its northern border on Thursday.

These patterns will also make temperatures feel more like early to mid-October and less like the last week of summer. Highs along the Wasatch Front will drop from the low to mid-80s on Monday to the mid to upper 60s and low 70s by Tuesday through the end of the week. Overnight lows could drop to the 40s and 50s across the region.

This corresponds to the normal maximum values ​​in around the second week of October, according to the weather service’s climate data.

In parts of Northern Utah, nighttime lows could even fall below zero this week. Higher elevations could also see more freeze warnings and advisories, as was the case in the Wasatch Backcountry last week.

Near St. George, highs will drop from the highs of 30 to 27 degrees Celsius to 27 to 25 degrees Celsius this week. Nighttime lows will drop to 10 degrees Celsius.

Complete seven-day forecasts for areas across Utah can be found online at the KSL Weather Center.

Resorts ready for the snow

Utah’s first snow of the season comes as the state’s 15 ski resorts prepare to begin the 2024-2025 ski season. Some have already announced tentative opening dates for the year:

• Alta ski area: 22 November
• Brian Head Resort: 8 November
• Deer Valley Resort: 7 December
• Eagle Point Resort: 20 December
• Park City Mountain: No. 22
• Snowbasin Resort: 29 November
• Snowbird Resort: 28.November
• Sundance Mountain Resort: December 2

Of course, these dates are subject to change depending on how much snow falls in the coming weeks and months. Utah had about 6.75 million skier visits last winter.