Tongue River And Powder River Snowpack Levels Get Much Needed Spring Moisture Boost

The recent weather system that slowly passed through the Cowboy State, provided a much needed boost to Wyoming snowpack numbers, particularly the north-central and northeast region.

According to the US Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resource Conservation Service (USDA NRCS), at the beginning of May 2024, snowpack levels in the Tongue River and Powder River basins were at 77% and 66% respectively, compared to the 30-year average (1991-2020).

After the recent weather system did its thing, numbers in both of those basins are now at about 106%.

Andrew Cassiday is the Sheridan area District Conservationist with the USDA NRCS.

He says now that the spring runoff is well underway, it’s now just a matter of how fast the snow melts.

“We should see reservoirs fill, should see normal runoff levels. What happens in terms of runoff depends largely on how the runoff occurs. What weather conditions we see, both in temperature and precipitation, whether it all comes off in one big flush, or sort of slow and steady like we like to see.”

Cassiday adds thanks to the recent moisture, he would put the fire danger level for Sheridan County for this coming summer, at about average.