Late Spring Storm Brings Snow, Freeze Warnings Across Utah
A fast-moving April system was expected to flip rain to snow in Utah valleys, with 5 to 10 inches in the north and freeze warnings from Logan to Cedar City.
Utah's spring travel plans got a hard reset: a fast-moving storm system was expected to turn rain to snow in some valleys, drop 5 to 10 inches in northern Utah's high country and send freeze warnings from Logan to Cedar City. Meteorologist Matt Johnson told KSL the change would come quickly enough that some accumulation could show up during the evening commute, a sharp reminder that April driving and trail access can shift in a matter of hours.
The biggest disruption was in the mountains. Higher totals were possible in the upper Cottonwood canyons, and Big Cottonwood Canyon trailheads were in the zone for a fresh coating if the system lined up right. The National Weather Service said lake-effect showers could still form east of the Great Salt Lake Friday morning, a setup that could leave slick pavement in southern Davis County and northern Salt Lake County after a cold overnight. In the Wasatch Mountains, that kind of late-season burst can turn canyon roads, trailheads and roadside pullouts icy by dawn, then muddy again by midday as the sun works on whatever snow stuck to the ground.
The storm also landed against a sobering snowpack picture. Utah entered April with 2.7 inches of snow water equivalent statewide, the lowest April 1 snowpack on record since measurements began in 1930, and the season peaked at just 8.3 inches on March 9, also the lowest peak in the modern record. The Utah Division of Water Resources says about 95% of Utah's water supply comes from snowpack, and it reported that 100% of the state was in some form of drought, so even this storm was more of a travel headache than a water-supply fix.
Travelers had already seen how sharp the swings could be. An earlier April storm brought more than an inch of rain to Lindon and Payson, close to a foot of snow at Alta Ski Resort and a freeze watch for the Wasatch Front, northern Utah and parts of central Utah. Farther south, the National Weather Service forecast for Cedar City included a Freeze Warning for April 18-19 and a Wednesday chance of rain and snow showers, a clear signal that late April still demanded winter-grade caution for campers, road-trippers and anyone heading into higher elevations before sunrise.
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