Weekend weather: More snow and cold head for Inland NW

At least one more snowstorm is on the way to the Inland Northwest as the holiday weekend arrives.

The National Weather Service is calling for 1 to 2 inches of snow mainly on Friday, although light snow could arrive as early as Thursday in Spokane and linger on Saturday.

Coeur d’Alene and other parts of North Idaho could see 2 to 4 inches with accumulating snowfall starting on Thursday night.

Mountain areas may see 6 inches or more of fresh powder.

Highs at lower elevations will remain near or just below freezing while lows drop into the 20s.

A mix of rain and snow is possible to the south of Spokane on Friday. Some areas may only see rain farther south.

A Pacific storm that is bringing the snow is also catching some milder air in it that could create the mixed conditions.

In Spokane and Coeur d’Alene, precipitation should be all snow.

If light snowfall lingers into Saturday it should be on the lighter side and then come to an end on Christmas Day.

Snow accumulations at area ski resorts are ensuring good skiing and snowboarding for the foreseeable future.

Lookout Pass is the snow winner so far this season with between 70 and 86 inches of snow from bottom to top as of Wednesday.

Silver Mountain resort has 35 to 40 inches; Mt. Spokane has 32 to 38 inches; Schweitzer has 27 to 47 inches; and 49 Degrees North has 34 to 48 inches.

Despite the snow, December is turning out to be a drier than normal month by quite a bit.

Through Tuesday, Spokane International Airport has received 0.76 inches of precipitation, which is 0.79 inches below normal for December.

So far this year, the airport has measured 17.57 inches of precipitation compared with a normal of 15.81 inches.

As for snow, the city is behind normal with 13.5 inches so far this season compared with a normal through Tuesday of 16.3 inches.