Record Montana Temps Again, But Where’s the Snow?

Montana is quickly running out of time to have a significant boost to our meager snowpack, and the return of mild temperatures after last week's cold snap isn't going to help the situation much.

Sunday was a day of contrasts as last week's Arctic air was finally being pushed out of the Northern Rockies. Missoula set a new high temperature record for the date of 58-degrees and the Bitterroot Valley reached the mid-50s in the afternoon, with other locations like Bozeman around 50 degrees, while Choteau and other locations east of the Divide were still below freezing.

The forecast is for snow or mixed rain and snow showers this week, and with temperatures back into the 40s and 50s, accumulations don't look likely at lower elevations. But a stronger push of moisture could bring several inches of snow to the pass level and above mid-week as the storm track pushes back to the north.

Palladium prices falling

With approval of a 132% duty on Russian palladium, global prices for the precious metal are already starting to fall, boding well for restarting the shuttered Sibanye-Stillwater Mine.

After hitting a high of $2,196 at the end of January, prices fell to $1629 when news of the duty was announced, then rebounded back $17.75 at the close of last week.

Daines positive on Libby mine future

Meanwhile, Senator Steve Daines is continuing to express optimism Hecla Mining's Libby Exploration Project is on its way to reality after decades of fighting over the mine's expansion.

The Trump Administration gave the former Montanore Mine approval of expedited permits last fall.

Yes, there's always a concern about litigation, but we're confident this time we're in a much stronger position," Daines said recently. "This will be a 1000 Montana jobs, uh, contributing nearly $3,000,000,000 if you think about what mining does to our economy. And that's really important that we get this mine now added to keep adding these jobs in Montana.:

Filing resumes in Helena

The second week of filing resumes in Helena this week, as incumbents Senator Steve Daines and 2nd District Representative Troy Downing have filed their paperwork. 1st District Congressman Ryan Zinke hadn't filed by Friday.

The big watch this week is whether we see University of Montana President Seth Bodnar file for the Senate race, following up on indications he'll run as an Independent with plans to step down at the university.

Boat inspections resume

The mild weather already makes it feel like boating season, and Montana Fish, Wildlife, & Parks is just days away from spinning up the first of the aquatic invasive species inspection stations on March 7th.

The first inspection locations will open as usual on the main routes in the state, like I-15 at Dillon and Anaconda, where a lot of boaters are coming back through from spring break in the Southwest, and on Highway 93 at Ravalli.

Last year, FWP conducted over 125,000 inspections, intercepting 28 watercraft that were fouled with zebra and quagga mussels, 21 of which were planning to launch in Montana waters.

READ MORE: Montana's AIS Program Update

Some "new gold" for Montana

Montana got a piece of that Olympic gold medal for the U.S. hockey team Sunday, with Whitefish's Jake Sanderson playing a key defensive role for the winners.

    🏒 The Whitefish native plays for Canada's Ottawa Senators, but Sunday it was all about stopping the Canadians.

Sanderson notched nearly 12 minutes of defense on ice in the game, over 18-shifts in regulation time, as Team USA weathered a furious offensive press by the Canadians to force overtime, and captured the medal in that 2-1 win.

Montana's "mountain towns" make list

Montana becomes the only state with three communities making another list of the best "mountain towns" in the country.

The latest from Travel & Leisure magazine based the rankings on what realtors say are the best choices, with Bozeman finishing at #1 in the country, and Whitefish and Bigfork rounding out the Top 10.