Hand Creek SNOTEL

5,030 ftFlathead County, MontanaNRCS site 510Updated Fri Oct 16, 4:00 AM MDT

Last peak9.2″SWE · Mar 16
Depth0″snow-free since Apr 22
Temp27°25°–54° 48 h
Thu 15Past 48 hAir temperature27°F now40°32°27°FNow · Fri 4 AM
ThuPast 48 hAir temperature27°F now40°32°27°FNow · Fri 4 AM
Sat 10Sun 11Mon 12Tue 13Wed 14Thu 15Past 7 daysAir temperature27°F now20°40°60°32°27°FNow · Fri 4 AM
SatSunMonTueWedThuPast 7 daysAir temperature27°F now20°40°60°32°27°FNow · Fri 4 AM
0″5″10″OctNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJul
0″5″10″ONDJFMAMJJ
<50%50–6970–8990–109110–129130–149150%+
0″2″8″16″32″+
0″6″24″48″100″+
Map
Open in the Vertex map

Next 3 days

The forecast for this station is on its way.

16-day outlook, three models

Last season

9.2″peak snow water equivalent

Last season peaked at 9.2″ of water, 84% of the median peak.

Nearby SNOTEL stations

All Montana

Station details

Elevation
5,030 ft
Location
48.3075°N, 114.8407°W
County
Flathead County, Montana
Basin
Stillwater · HUC 17010210
Network
NRCS SNOTEL · site 510
Station ID
510:MT:SNTL · SHEF HANM8
Reporting since
October 1976
NWS forecast office
Missoula (MSO) discussion

Questions

What is snow water equivalent (SWE)?

SWE is the depth of water you would get by melting the whole snowpack. Fresh powder is often 5 to 10% water; old spring snow can be 40% or more.

How often does Hand Creek SNOTEL update?

The station reports every hour by radio telemetry to the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. This page refreshes each hour. Readings are provisional until NRCS quality control.

What does “% of median” mean?

It compares today’s SWE with the 1991–2020 median for the same calendar day at this station. Above 100% means more water in the snowpack than on a typical year’s same date.

Where is Hand Creek SNOTEL?

At 5,030 ft in Flathead County, Montana (48.3075°N, 114.8407°W), in the Stillwater basin.

How is the snow forecast made?

Vertex runs the HRRR, RRFS and GFS weather models at the station’s own elevation and carries the measured snowpack forward hour by hour. Treat it as guidance, and check your avalanche center’s forecast before heading out.