While it certainly hasn't felt like it these past few weeks, we all know that winter is coming! The Boise area has blessed us with a few days of beautiful fall weather. We've had some crisp mornings that remind us of what's ahead, but the afternoons have been picture perfect.
After months of it being too hot to get out on the Greenbelt for a run after work, I've felt really spoiled by the gorgeous October weather and intend to take advantage of it as long as it sticks around. However, other parts of Idaho are already experiencing snow, reduced visibility and slick roads. The National Weather Service in Pocatello shared this traffic cam image from near Island Park on October 5:
Needless to say, the comment section had mixed feelings about that photo. Some ski enthusiasts are looking forward to getting on the slopes, while commuters are dreading icy roads. What sort of winter are we in for this year?
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AccuWeather is the latest organization to release their winter forecast for 2025-2026 and there are a few sections of it that are definitely significant in Idaho!
We know that there are some people actually hoping for another "snowpocalypse" and according to AccuWeather, some parts of the state will experience that. In the snow portion of their winter outlook, they directly call out Idaho, saying:
A snowy winter is predicted across portions of the Midwest, a swath from the Plains to the Ohio Valley, and areas of Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana.
The snow map has most of the state north of Weiser highlighted in a dark blue color indicating above average snowfall. They're predicting an especially active December for Idaho and the northern Rockies, followed by a lull before storms ramp back up in late winter and early spring.
When it comes to temperatures, AccuWeather expects temperatures on the West Coast and most of the Rockies to be close to record highs by February but specifically said Idaho, Montana and Wyoming are the exceptions.
The bottom line? Long-range forecasts are tough to believe, but this projection from AccuWeather seems like it sits between the surprisingly frigid winter the Farmer's Almanac predicted and the warmer-than-normal winter the rival Old Farmer's Almanac says is ahead.
We'll have to wait and see, but if you're a winter enthusiast it looks like you have plenty of reasons to be optimistic about snowy weather ahead!