Monday, October 26, 2026
The ski season suddenly feels a lot closer this morning. A Northern Rockies snow forecast published Sunday by SnowBrains puts Schweitzer at the top of the regional list this week, calling for 7 to 12 inches of snow at the resort from Monday through Thursday as colder air settles over Montana, Wyoming and Idaho. Whitefish, the next closest resort on that list, is forecast at 4 to 7 inches. Forecasts this early can shift, and the resort itself is not promising a number, but a possible foot of snow 32 days before opening day gets skis out of closets across the panhandle. Did you know Schweitzer's first official snow sighting of the season came back on October 10? This week's system could turn that early dusting into the real start of base building.
The resort's own Mountain Report this morning tells the before picture. At the village, it was 41 degrees and clear with a light wind of 2 miles per hour from the north. Up at the summit, it was 35 degrees and clear, with a wind of 19 miles per hour from the east-northeast. Every snow field on the report still shows dashes: no base depth, no season total, and no snowfall in the last 12, 24 or 48 hours. The mountain remains closed for the season, with 0 of 10 lifts running, 0 of 92 trails open and 0 of 2,900 acres available. The resort's village forecast calls for cloudy skies with snow and rain today, a high of 40 and a low of 31, then snow and wind on Tuesday at 31 and 28, and more snow and wind on Wednesday, with a high of 28 and a low of 26.
The shared morning radar fits that unsettled picture. The Spokane radar shows light precipitation south of Sandpoint and along Interstate 90 between Spokane and Coeur d'Alene this morning, so expect damp pavement on the drive in. Looking further ahead, two dates now frame the whole season. Schweitzer's tentative opening day is Friday, November 27, and the resort's season pass sale ends on Sunday, November 15, just 20 days from now, before prices go up. Three-Packs start at $249 while supplies last. On the calendar just before those deadlines, Warren Miller's new film Days Off screens at the Panida on November 7, the State of Schweitzer follows on November 12, and the SARS Ski Swap returns to the Bonner County Fairgrounds on November 14.
In panhandle news, this is the final week of early voting in Bonner County. Early voting runs weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Elections Office in the county building at 1500 Highway 2 in Sandpoint, and it ends at 5 p.m. on Friday, October 30, ahead of the general election on Tuesday, November 3. Sandpoint voters will also decide a proposed 1 percent sales tax for street repairs, which would run from 2027 through 2036 if approved. Closer to the mountain, Schweitzer Basin Water customers have a workshop on Tuesday evening: the customer workshop on the utility's requested rate case, docket SCH-W-26-01, runs from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on October 27 in the Marigold Conference Room at the Sandpoint Center, 414 Church Street, and written comments in the case remain open into January.
Today's events have a distinctly historic ring. The Idaho Liberty Bell, a full-size replica touring all 44 Idaho counties for the state's America250 celebration, makes three stops nearby today: the West Bonner Library in Priest River from 2:55 to 3:25 p.m., Dover City Hall from 4:25 to 4:55 p.m., and Jeff Jones Town Square in Sandpoint from 5:35 to 6:05 p.m. After that, the Monday regulars take over. There is a cribbage tournament at Connie's, 323 Cedar Street, at 6 p.m. for $5 per person, and the Monday Night Blues Jam with John Firshi runs at Eichardt's Pub, 212 Cedar Street, from 7 to 10 p.m.
The rest of the week stays busy. Tuesday brings karaoke at Roxy's starting at 9 p.m., On Wednesday, Andrew Martinssen plays live piano at Pend d'Oreille Winery from 5 to 7 p.m., the Sandpoint Tango Lab meets at the Embody Center from 6 to 8:30 p.m., and Live Trivia with Toshi starts at Connie's at 7 p.m. Thursday pairs an Irish Jam with Seamus at Connie's at 5:30 p.m. with The Rocky Horror Picture Show at the Panida at 8 p.m., doors an hour early. Friday is Halloween eve done properly: A Hogwild Halloween at The Hive from 7 p.m., the Grand Kyiv Ballet's Swan Lake at the Panida at 7 p.m., and the final night of Scarywood at Silverwood. Saturday brings the downtown Candy Walk from 3 to 5:30 p.m., pumpkin painting at Barrel 33 from 2 to 4 p.m., and Halloween shows at The Hive, Eichardt's and the 219 Lounge.
If you are coming up to watch the snow stake its first real claim on the mountain, or to catch the Liberty Bell, the ballet and a Halloween weekend in town, we would love to welcome you at The Village Overlook, our hotel-style studio on the hill above Schweitzer's ski village. It is a warm, easy base for weeks like this one, when every forecast update feels like it matters. Check the Mountain Report before you drive, bring a layer for that summit wind, and we will see you on the mountain side of Sandpoint.