Avalanche danger at high level

High wind led to power outages Thursday and, combined with snow, pushed the avalanche danger to high in the mountains of Northwest Montana.

Wind as high as 119 mph was reported in Glacier National Park, while a power outage Thursday morning forced Blacktail Mountain Ski Area to shut down for the day.

The wind toppled a tree on the main power line on Blacktail Road, according to Wendy Ostrom Price of Flathead Electric Cooperative. Power was out to 36 customers there.

Power was restored by 10:30 a.m., Ostrom Price said.

Although the ski area was closed Thursday, it will reopen today.

There were other scattered power outages around Bigfork and along the Middle Fork of the Flathead River. Power had been restored to all areas by Thursday afternoon.

Blacktail was one of many areas hit by high winds during the night and early morning. Blacktail had a "blizzardy night with 4-5 inches of snow on the upper mountain and rain at the bottom."

It was even windier elsewhere.

At Logan Pass in Glacier National Park, wind speeds were 65 mph gusting to 119 mph at 4 a.m. Thursday.

In addition to the wind, higher elevations received snow while rain fell at lower elevations.

Whitefish Mountain Resort, for example, had 7 inches of new snow at the summit overnight but the snow line on Thursday was halfway up Chair 2.

Whitefish Mountain now has 70 runs open.

An avalanche bulletin was issued Thursday for Glacier National Park and the Flathead and Kootenai national forests.

"Between the elevations of 5,000 and 7,500 feet, the avalanche danger is currently rated high on all steep and open wind-loaded terrain from new storm accumulations and wind loading," stated the advisory from Tony Willits, a Forest Service avalanche specialist.

New snow and wind-transported snow are causing natural and triggered avalanches on east, northwest, north and northeast slopes at or near ridge tops. The scale of avalanches have been moderate to large with fracture depths up to 3 feet.

The advisory expires at midnight tonight but could be extended with new snow and continued wind-driven snow loading on ridgetops.

New snow is in the forecast for the mountains, with 8 to 10 inches forecast today in the Marias Pass area, combined with expected 20 to 40 mph winds.

In the Flathead Valley, snow early this morning is expected to turn to rain and then back to snow showers tonight.