Lack of Snowfall out West = Smaller Elk, Deer, and Moose Racks for 2026?

[mt terry d]

Sorry, but this is a fundamental misunderstanding of the difference between rain and snow.

Rain is actually more immediate and flows to the drainages. Snow is more of a time released capsule that holds much of its water until spring, allowing the various damns and reservoirs to manage the flow. In terms of the higher elevation ecosysem, snowmelt is generally much more efficient at soaking into the ground than rain is.

Rain is like getting your entire yearly salary in cash on January 1st. If you aren't careful, you spend it all or lose it and once its gone, its gone. Snowpack is like getting a steady paycheck every two weeks throughout the year. It guarantees you have funds when you actually need to pay the bills in the summer.

It’s almost as if the Rocky Mountain West has an entire ecosystem evolved heavily around Winter snow pack. Deprive those mountain of that snowpack and the ecosystem starts to unwind. This is not going to benefit the animals that rely on that very ecosystem, whether that's up high or down stream. You start stacking year upon year of low snowpack and the effects will be entirely negative.

Im not saying that snowpack in the mountains isn’t good but that is absolutely the opposite of what actually occurs here.

 

[StupidLightweight]

In my part of Wyoming, this has been the best winter I've experienced! It has felt like permanent October since late October.

I get there may be ramifications if this delightful weather continues until spring, but what are we to do about it? Nothing. So we might as well enjoy it while it lasts.

 

[CarterHunt]

For most of the mountainous areas I have experience in (not talking deserts) I think the result of lighter snowpack is going to be creeks running dry earlier than usual, but shouldn't have too much of an impact on feed availability for most of the antler growing season. I think the earlier head start on green up from a lighter snow pack will benefit more than the late summer dry up will hurt.

 

[RockAndSage]

West Snowpack

View attachment 1023932

Red, Orange and yellow are below average. Green is near average. Blue is above average.

This is comparing current snow totals with the average of the last 30 years. And those 30 years have been dryer than the years before that.
Plenty of winter left but it's a bad start.

That's a great map, thanks for sharing the link. I clicked the radio button for overall precip, and was pretty surprised to see that most of the places in Nevada with dangerously low snowpack are actually 90% plus for overall precipitation. Must also just be a warmer than average winter around here...

 

[Baddog]

 

[ianpadron]

In my part of Wyoming, this has been the best winter I've experienced! It has felt like permanent October since late October.

I get there may be ramifications if this delightful weather continues until spring, but what are we to do about it? Nothing. So we might as well enjoy it while it lasts.

Yup

I've hiked more in February already than I typically do all winter, and actually in the mountains to boot!

I miss skiing but this winter is far from sucky

 

[Poser]

Im not saying that snowpack in the mountains isn’t good but that is absolutely the opposite of what actually occurs here.

Except its not.

 

[Bigbuckbandit]

View attachment 1024069

Precipitation does not equal snowpack

 

[CorbLand]

I park in the garage so this was empty when I went to work yesterday at 730 and this was taken around 4. Had about a foot of snow at the house. I really wish I could afford a snowblower.

 

[KurtR]

View attachment 1024169

I park in the garage so this was empty when I went to work yesterday at 730 and this was taken around 4. Had about a foot of snow at the house. I really wish I could afford a snowblower.

Send some over our way. Its so brown and dry its depressing

 

[IdahoJoe29]

As someone who lives out west I'm far more concerned with how bad of a fire season we might be in for

Yea I’m more concerned with the public land getting shut down due to wildfires

 

[CorbLand]

Send some over our way. Its so brown and dry its depressing

Prior to this storm, I was getting ready to start working on the yard. It was 60 degrees during the day.

 

[KurtR]

Prior to this storm, I was getting ready to start working on the yard. It was 60 degrees during the day.

Yep we had 2 straight weeks of 50's messed up ice fishing and coyote hunting got tough.

 

[Serrano]

Yes, total precipitation for the water year isn't as bad as the snowpack.
There was a lot of rain in the end of 2025. Remnants of two pacific hurricanes dumped a lot of rain on the San Juans in October. Enough to add 15 feet to Lake Navajo and 2 feet to Lake Powell. And most small reservoirs in the area overflowed.
Also, a bunch of Atmospheric Rivers hit the west coast.
These events added a lot of water to the reservoirs because of the rapid pace of rainfall.
But we will still need more snowpack.

Lake Navajo

 

[CorbLand]

Just to update this. Ski resort here is reporting 16 inches in the last 48 hours and it’s still a snowing. We have gotten about an inch down in the valley in 2 hours.

16 inches is about a 40% increase in their snow pack. Crazy how fast things can change.

Updating this again.

Ski resort got 12 inches in the last 48 hours. They have over doubled their snow pack since the start of this thread.

 

[dtrkyman]

Upper 60s and low 70s in Santa Fe, what little snow pack we had is going away quickly!

Those temps are forecast for a 10ish day plus stretch!


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[Johnny Tyndall]

Update 3/3. Good luck in NM. Looking like it could be a grim smoke season up in MT