textproduct: Pocatello

KEY MESSAGES

- Dangerous winds are possible Thursday and again on Saturday. A combination of HIGH WIND WARNING and WIND ADVISORY is currently in effect for Thursday.

- High elevation snow will be possible tonight through Saturday across portions of the Central Mountains and passes east of I-15.

- Significant warming trend begins by early next week. Record daytime highs may be possible by Tuesday.

DISCUSSION

Issued at 110 AM MDT Thu Mar 12 2026

Winds will continue to ramp area wide for today into this evening. The "least wind" areas today will still gusts 25-35 mph. A good chunk of central and eastern Idaho will be in the 40-60 mph range for gusts. We may see localized gusts to 70 mph across portions of the Snake Plain and adjacent bench areas, as well as across higher elevations of the South Hills and Albion Mountains. Across higher ridgelines, such as the Lost River Range, Pioneers, and Boulders...look for gusts approaching 65-75 mph for a short time during the afternoon. There is very low chance that those ridgetops could even gust higher than that according the Blend of Models. Those winds will diminish tonight and Friday, but still remain pretty windy in some areas. Gusts tomorrow in many areas will be in the 35-55 mph. We will see one last period of high winds on Saturday, which continues to trend toward being stronger than today. We are currently looking at gusts of 45-65 mph across many areas. We have a 20-40% chance of exceeding 65 mph across the Snake Plain, Magic Valley, and adjacent bench areas. There is a very low chance of exceeding 75 mph in those areas. There is a 30-60% chance of exceeding 75 mph as well for higher ridgelines in the central mountains EXCEPT the Sawtooths, highest elevations of the eastern and southeast highlands, and Bear River Range. We kept the WIND ADVISORY AND HIGH WIND WARNING intact from yesterday, although we added the Lost River, Challis, and Pahsimeroi Valleys. There is the potential that the Lower Snake Plain may need added to the HIGH WIND WARNING if trends continue upward. We will need a WIND ADVISORY tomorrow for some valley locations, and likely a combination of WIND ADVISORY and HIGH WIND WARNING headlines Saturday. Moisture will continue to occasionally stream across the central mountains and eastern highlands through the weekend. Saturday and Sunday may see the potential for showers for all zones and all elevations, but the focus would remain in similar areas overall. Three day totals for precipitation for the eastern highlands will be 0.30-0.80", with the high end of that range fairly isolated and more likely north and east of the borders with Wyoming and Southwest Montana. For the central mountains, this strong flow will really limit precipitation to the Sawtooths, Frank Church, northern end of the Smokys, Boulders, White Clouds. Three day totals are 0.50-1.50" above 8000ft, with localized at or above 2". We trimmed quite a bit of precipitation (0.50-1.0" worth) in those areas back, as it appears the higher resolution models are producing unrealistic 6-12 hour totals. That said, there is still a 10-40% chance of exceeding 2" on the spine of the Sawtooths. That produces a potential for 10-30" above 8500ft from around Galena Summit northward, with little to no snow south toward the Wood River Valley.

By Sunday, a strong ridge of high pressure begins to reestablish itself over the western states, leading to a dry, less windy, and increasingly warm pattern. Temperatures warm significantly starting Monday. Current NBM probabilities suggest a 30% chance of reaching 70 degrees across the Eastern Magic Valley by Monday, and a 40-70% chance of reaching 80 degrees for the Snake Plain south and west of Blackfoot by Wednesday, nearing or exceeding records.

AVIATION /06Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z FRIDAY/

Issued at 1001 PM MDT Wed Mar 11 2026

Main impacts for overnight are expected to be winds which with gusts to 25kts likely at most sites. SUN will likely keep a downvalley wind through the night. Strong gusts are likely Thursday, especially at IDA and PIH which could exceed 40kts in the afternoon. SUN will likely see strong gusty crosswinds after 14z.

PIH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

Wind Advisory from 9 AM this morning to 9 PM MDT this evening for IDZ051-054-055-057-058-062-067-068-070. High Wind Warning from 9 AM this morning to 9 PM MDT this evening for IDZ052-053-056-065.