Erin Whorton

Snowpack levels are finally inching up in Idaho, but it’s still a far cry from where the state needs to be this winter.

Idaho's snowpack is looking a bit grim this January, but there’s a silver lining hiding in the rainfall data. Let’s unpack what this means for the water needs of the Gem State.

December has been a wet month across much of the Northwest, and while much of that fell as rain rather than snow, any precipitation is welcome news, especially in northern Idaho.

“Here in Idaho, we have a record low snowpack for this time in December, pretty much across the entire state," said Erin Whorton with NRCS.

With Memorial Day, the unofficial kick off to summer, this weekend, now is a good time to close the book on the snow season in Idaho.  Erin Whorton with NRCS said for the most part the 2024-2025 snow year was good with above normal snowpacks recorded across much of the Gem State.   “...

Despite the warming daytime highs, the snowpack across Idaho still looks very good.  Erin Whorton with NRCS said the snow season was a good one across the state.   “We saw wetter than normal conditions north of the Snake River Plain, especially compared to last year, and we really saw a much better snowpack in northern Idaho compared to last year," she noted.  "The snowpack sout... Read

Snowpacks across Idaho are looking very good as we head into the final weeks of the snow season.  When it comes to individual basins across the Gem state, most are at or above normal for this time of year, with the one expectation being the Coeur D’Alene-St. Joe in norther...

After months of concern, it looks like irrigators in Idaho can breathe a small sigh of relief, after the snowpack made considerable improvements between January and February.   “We've had a lot of big storms come through the area and so we've seen the snowpack really improve, especially from the Salmon Basin through the south," said Erin Whorton with NRCS.  "So, wes...

Despite being in the middle of winter, many locations across Idaho are dry for this time of year, with some locations reporting drought figures.  Erin Whorton with NRCS said when looking at total Water Year to Date precipitation, which is all of the water that’s fallen out of the sky since October 1st, Idaho is off where it should be for this time of year.  The exception...

The snowpack across Idaho has been a bit of a rollercoaster this year.  Erin Whorton with NRCS said the state saw really good snow accumulation in November and then again around the holidays, but since then things have been fairly quiet.  When it...