Trip Planning · Duck Creek Journal
How Much Snow Does Duck Creek Village Get a Year? The Gauges Below and Above It Say 77 and 215 Inches
No gauge in Duck Creek Village measures snowfall. The two long NOAA records on either side of it do: Alton, 1,300 feet lower, averages 77.5 inches a year, and Blowhard Mountain, 2,300 feet higher, logged a median 215 inches a winter. The snow sensor nearest the village peaks at about 30 inches on the ground.
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Nobody measures how much snow falls in Duck Creek Village. The two long NOAA snowfall records on either side of it do: Alton, 1,300 feet lower and 12 miles east, averages 77.5 inches a year, and Blowhard Mountain, 2,300 feet higher and 12 miles west, logged a median 215 inches a winter. The village, at about 8,400 feet, sits between them.
On the ground, the closest snow sensor to the inn, Harris Flat, peaks at a median 30 inches, most often in February. The sensor beside Highway 14 at Midway Valley peaks near 80.
| Snow around Duck Creek Village | |
|---|---|
| Snowfall gauge in the village | None on record |
| Alton, 7,088 ft | 77.5 in a year, 1991 to 2020 normal |
| Blowhard Mountain, 10,689 ft | 215 in median winter, 1964 to 2002 |
| Snow on the ground, Harris Flat | 30 in median peak |
| Days with snow cover, Harris Flat | 130 in a median winter |
No snowfall gauge stands in Duck Creek Village
NOAA’s station list holds one gauge that ever stood near the village: Duck Creek Ranger Station, 1.9 miles west of the inn at 8,562 feet, from 1934 to 1936. Its surviving record covers May to September and nothing else, so it never logged a winter. No other station with a snowfall record sits within 11 miles, volunteer gauges included.
That leaves two good records and a gap between them. Alton, a small town 12 miles east at 7,088 feet, has a snowfall record that reaches back to 1915. Its 1991 to 2020 normal is 77.5 inches, with about 51 of those in December through February. Blowhard Mountain, the radar summit at 10,689 feet south of Cedar Breaks, recorded 28 full winters from 1964 to 2002 with a median of 215 inches. Its thinnest winter brought 147 inches, and 1978 to 1979 brought 382.
We will not put one number between those two and call it the village. The snow sensors below show why: Panguitch Lake sits 500 feet above Harris Flat and holds less snow in the same winters.
How deep the snow gets near the village
| Median snow on the ground, Harris Flat | |
|---|---|
| Thanksgiving, November 26 | 1 in, bare in 11 of 23 years |
| Christmas Day | 9 in |
| January 15 | 15 in |
| March 1 | 21 in |
| April 1 | 1 in, bare in 10 of 23 years |
Snow depth tells you more about your trip than snowfall does, and three NRCS SNOTEL snow sensors ring the village. Harris Flat sits 5.5 miles east at 7,800 feet. Panguitch Lake sits 12.5 miles north at 8,300 feet, the closest match to village height, and it holds less snow than Harris Flat in the same winters, with a median peak of 25.5 inches. Midway Valley sits 10 miles west at 9,830 feet, a few hundred yards off Highway 14 near the summit, and it lives in another climate: a median peak of 81.5 inches, snow on the ground about 208 days a year, and 166 inches on March 25, 2005.
Year to year swings are wide. Harris Flat peaked at 7 inches in the winter of 2017 to 2018 and 66 inches in 2022 to 2023. Last winter, 2025 to 2026, gave it 49 days with snow on the ground, the fewest in 23 winters of record.
Snow in Duck Creek Village right now
| Snow on the ground, November 4, 2026 | |
|---|---|
| Midway Valley, Highway 14 summit | 9 in |
| Harris Flat | 0 in |
| Panguitch Lake | 0 in |
| NWS forecast through November 10 | Dry, highs 43 to 53 F |
The Halloween weekend storm left 11 inches at Midway Valley by the morning of November 2, and it has settled to 9 since. The village and both lower sensors stayed bare. The National Weather Service forecast for the inn calls for sun and no precipitation through Tuesday, November 10, with lows in the 20s and 30s.
That fits the record. Median snow at Harris Flat does not pass an inch until late November, while the summit carries a median 13.5 inches by Thanksgiving. For the full picture by month, our February weather guide covers the deepest weeks, and our winter guide to Duck Creek covers snowshoe routes, cross-country trails and the snowmobile network. Check road conditions before you drive up.
Quick answers about snow in Duck Creek Village
- Does it snow in Duck Creek Village, Utah?
Yes. Snow covers the ground near the village about 130 days in a median winter, from late November to early April, and the Highway 14 summit carries snow about 208 days.
- How much snow does Duck Creek Village get a year?
No gauge measures it. Alton, 1,300 feet lower, averages 77.5 inches a year, and Blowhard Mountain, 2,300 feet higher, logged a median 215 inches.
- When is the snow deepest near Duck Creek Village?
Late February near the village, at a median 26 inches at Harris Flat. At Midway Valley on Highway 14 the median peaks in mid March, near 68 inches.
- Is there snow in Duck Creek Village at Thanksgiving?
About half the time. Harris Flat sat bare on November 26 in 11 of 23 years, while the Midway Valley sensor on the summit had snow on that date in 24 of 26 years.
Our cabins and rooms sit at 8,464 feet on Highway 14, between the bare valley floors and the deep summit, close enough to drive up for the first real snow of the year.
Trip Planning What Is the Weather Like in Duck Creek Village in February?
February in Duck Creek Village brings 42F afternoons, nights from 11 to 19F and the deepest snow of the season near village height. Station data on the coldest night of the winter, Presidents' Day snow, the summit and the valley towns below.
Trip Planning What Is the Weather Like in Duck Creek Village in November?
November in Duck Creek Village runs 48 to 49F by day and about 24F at night, with 24 to 29 freezing nights in the month. Snow sits on the ground about 10 days in an average November at village elevation and 22 days at the Highway 14 summit. The highway stays open; Cedar Breaks closes on snow.
Trip Planning Does Cedar City, Utah Get Snow? 60 Inches a Year in Town, Five Feet at the Top of Highway 14
Yes. Cedar City averages 59.6 inches of snow a year, more than Salt Lake City's airport, with December and March the snowiest months. Snow in town melts within a couple of days, while the snow sensor beside Highway 14, 18 miles up the road, reads five and a half feet by mid March. Months, records, last winter and the drive up.
Book the basecamp
When the trip idea is taking shape, Duck Creek Village Inn makes an easy base between slower mountain time and bigger Southern Utah days.