Snow returns to mountains, as fall-like temperatures reach Utah ahead of official season

SALT LAKE CITY — Fall may begin Saturday, but it’ll feel more like mid-season in parts of Utah over the next few days as a cold front passes through the state, bringing in more rain and dropping high temperatures 15 to 20 degrees below what they’ve been the past few weeks.

The cooldown is also bringing more mountain snow after another storm provided the first brushing of the season earlier this month.

The cold front began entering Utah from the Pacific Northwest on Thursday morning ahead of a low-pressure system behind it. As a result, more showers and thunderstorms pushed through Utah’s northern half Thursday morning and afternoon.

The precipitation started transitioning over to snow in some high-elevation areas, including parts of the state receiving it for the first time in a while. Snowbasin Resort, for example, posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, that it is receiving its first snow of the season, a month ahead of its first snow last year.

First snow of the season!! ❄️
A full month ahead of last year and two days before Fall officially starts… pic.twitter.com/nq3BWhoCBy

— Snowbasin Resort (@SnowbasinResort) September 21, 2023

KSL meteorologist Matt Johnson says the showers will continue through Thursday evening for most of the state. The National Weather Service adds that “gusty” conditions are forecast for southern Utah ahead of the cold front, though the area has a lower chance for precipitation.

Showers are forecast to linger into early Friday morning across the Wasatch Front and northern Utah. The weather service notes that snow is likely at elevations at or above about 9,000 feet, resulting in more “light accumulations” in the mountains.

Scattered showers are possible in Utah’s northern parts later Friday, Johnson said. The storm is projected to provide anywhere from one-fourth to two-thirds of an inch of precipitation across the Wasatch Front and northern Utah between Thursday morning and Friday night, according to KSL Weather models.

Temperatures are also set to drop as a result of the storm system.

Salt Lake City, for example, is forecast to have a high in the upper 60s on Thursday and mid-60s on Friday, with overnight lows potentially dropping into the 40s, after the city reached a high of 84 degrees on Wednesday. The forecast temperatures are typically experienced in mid-October, per National Weather Service climate data.

Temperatures in northern Utah should top out in the mid-60s through Saturday, possibly reaching the upper 50s on Friday in Logan. Overnight lows may fall into the 30s during this time. High temperatures in southern Utah, in areas like Moab and St. George, will drop to the mid- to low 80s over the next few days.

Warmer and drier conditions are forecast across the state by the end of the weekend and into next week, as temperatures return to normal for mid-to-late September.

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

Related reading: Ready for snow this weekend, northern Utah?