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SALT LAKE CITY — The National Weather Service on Thursday issued a winter storm warning for some parts of northern Utah ahead of a winter storm that could impact some travel during the Thanksgiving weekend.

A few other parts of the state remain under winter weather advisories, which were initially issued on Wednesday.

The storm, set to arrive in Utah on Thursday, may provide measurable snow in some valley areas for the first time this season.

“It’s not the biggest storm we’ve ever seen, but it’s definitely going to be impactful because we’ve got a lot of people on the road,” said KSL meteorologist Matt Johnson.

Storm timing

The storm is coming into the Beehive State primarily from the north and northwest and is expected to provide a mixture of valley rain and mountain snow when it arrives Thursday afternoon, Johnson says.

The valley rain will slowly transition to snow on Thursday night and into early Friday for many valley areas in northern and central Utah, as well as parts of eastern Utah. Precipitation is expected to taper off in the valleys later Friday, though some lingering snow showers are possible in the mountains into Saturday, according to the weather service.

There’s also a possibility for downslope winds with gusts up to 55 mph for valley communities ranging from Davis County to the Cache Valley. The weather service issued a wind advisory that’s in effect from 8 p.m. Thursday to 11 a.m. Friday.

The storm is also expected to clear out an inversion event that started earlier this week, improving air quality.

Snow accumulations

The weather service elevated a section of Wasatch Mountains, the parts north of I-80, to a winter storm warning primarily because wind gusts of up to 45 mph will create blowing snow that may reduce visibility “to near 0 at times,” especially by Logan Summit. The section of the mountains is forecast to receive 8 to 15 inches of snow between Thursday afternoon and Friday evening.

Several other areas remain under winter weather advisories, which will take effect Thursday afternoon and linger through the end of Friday. These state that:

• 6 to 12 inches of snow or more is forecast for the Wasatch Mountains south of I-80 and the West Uintas. The upper Cottonwood Canyons may end up with over 1 foot of snow.
• 5 to 10 inches or more of snow is forecast for the East Uintas and the mountains in southeast Utah.
• 5 to 10 inches of snow is also forecast for the central mountains, while parts of the Wasatch Plateau and Book Cliffs in central Utah are forecast to receive about 4 to 8 inches of snow.
• 3 to 6 inches of snow is forecast for the western Uinta Basin, including Duchesne and Roosevelt
• 2 to 5 inches of snow is forecast for the Wasatch Back, including Park City.

Parts of the southern mountains could receive as much as almost a half-foot of snow as well, according to a model the agency updated on Thursday.

Johnson said a trace to a few inches of snow is possible for valley areas across northern and central Utah. Higher totals are more likely in the Utah and Sanpete valleys, while the downslope winds could hamper some accumulations in northern Utah.

Storm impacts

The weather service advises that “slippery road conditions” are likely across mountain passes in northern and central Utah. It adds blowing snow may “significantly reduce visibility” as well.

The Utah Department of Transportation issued a road weather alert, which states drivers should use the most caution if they plan to drive in high-elevation areas in northeast Utah Thursday night and Friday morning. It also notes drivers should be prepared for slick roads across northern and central Utah.

“As temps drop to freezing Thursday night, light road snow will be possible along the Wasatch Front into Friday morning, particularly along bench routes,” the agency wrote. “While heavy snow is not anticipated along the Wasatch Front, Friday morning may be quite slick across many routes.”

Per UDOT, the routes most likely to be impacted over the next few days are:

• I-15: Utah-Idaho border down to Cove Fort and the I-70 junction
• I-70: Cove Fort to Sevier, as well as Salina Summit
• I-80: Grassy Mountain rest area to the Utah-Wyoming border
• I-84
• I-215: Parts by Salt Lake County’s east bench
• U.S. 6: Spanish Fork to Helper
• U.S. 40: I-80/Silver Creek junction to Utah-Colorado border
• U.S. 89: Utah-Idaho border to Mount Pleasant
• U.S. 189
• U.S. 191: Wyoming border through US-191 Summit; Through Indian Canyon Summit to US-6 Junction
• SR-30
• SR-31
• SR-35
• SR-39
• SR-143
• SR-150
• SR-158
• SR-190
• SR-210

Drivers may want to reconsider traveling even in valley areas Thursday night and Friday morning, if possible, Johnson said.

“It’s … not a ton of snow, but coming out of summer and fall, we just haven’t seen that snow yet,” he said. “This is the first one that’ll probably get that I-15 corridor, so it can be impactful for sure.”

This weekend is also expected to be the coldest in some time. High temperatures may only top out in the mid-30s across the Wasatch Front and northern Utah with overnight lows in the teens and low 20s through the end of the holiday weekend.

It’s also a boost for Utah’s resorts and snow collection after a bigger storm impacted the state this past weekend. The state’s snowpack — a measure of water in the snow — jumped from 0.4 inches on Friday to 1.1 inches by Wednesday morning. It’s about 66% of the median average for this point in the season.

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

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