Snow and meteorological observations were collected over a range of water years (WY) by three research institutions and by citizen scientists to characterize forest effects on snow processes across the Pacific Northwest, USA. Fourteen total study sites cover the western slopes and crest of the Cascade Range in WA and OR, and central and northern ID. Each study location includes one or more paired forest and open area in which to compare snow observations. A range of forest canopy densities and data collection strategies are represented, including paired manual snow courses, snow pits, automated sensors, and time-lapse images of snow measurement poles. Analysis and synthesis of all of these sites are presented in the data citation. Location attributes are provided as metadata for each site.

UIEF_wind Summary: Within the Flat Creek Unit of the University of Idaho Experimental Forest (UIEF) near Moscow, ID, 30-minute snow depth and meteorological data were collected at seven locations across the Lawler Landing site (elevation 880 m) from February to May of WY 2008. A 70 m north-south oriented transect of 5 snow depth sensors was deployed to record sub-daily snow depth, with co-located meteorological instruments. The sensors traversed a 40 m long elliptical forest gap and the adjacent forest in both directions. The locations were the same as those used previously to quantify how shortwave and longwave radiation vary across a forest gap [Lawler and Link, 2011]. Two additional snow depth sensors and meteorological stations were deployed at “interior forest reference” and “open reference” sites, situated 80 m southeast and 1200 m west, respectively, from the main transect. Whereas the forest reference site was similar to the surrounding forest, the open reference site was much more exposed than the forest gap. These data are generally raw datalogger output and have not been quality controlled in any way unless specifically designated in the variable name. See manufacturer specifications for individual instruments to determine sensor accuracy. This file was compiled from individual raw data files provided by IU, along with approximate coordinates of the sensor locations. Collaborators at the University of Washington (Jessica Lundquist) converted the timestamp given in fractional julian days to a dates and added site attributes such as Location ID and cover. UIEF_snowdepth Summary: Observed snow depth from acoustic sensor. Measurements taken within the Lowler Landing Gap, as part of the University of Idaho Experimental Forest. Sensor data was collected half-hourly during February through May 2008. Sensor data collected at 7 different points. See location metadata and data citation for description of locations. These data include raw values and values that were smoothed by Diana Carson, see data citation for details. UIEF_Location Summary: Within the Flat Creek Unit of the University of Idaho Experimental Forest (UIEF) near Moscow, ID, 30-minute snow depth and meteorological data were collected at seven locations across the Lawler Landing site (elevation 880 m) from February to May of WY 2008. These location metadata are assocatied with each unique location identification, which ties to time series data. See Figure 1 of data citation for schematic map of locations. These coordinates are estimated from Google Earth based on Dr. Timothy Link's memory of where the sensors were located. Other attributes of each location were recorded as field notes as part of the study design.

OSU_SnowCourse Summary: Manual snow course observations were collected over WY 2012-2014 from four paired forest-open sites chosen to span a broad elevation range. Study sites were located in the upper McKenzie (McK) River watershed, approximately 100 km east of Corvallis, Oregon, on the western slope of the Cascade Range and in the Middle Fork Willamette (MFW) watershed, located to the south of the McKenzie. The sites were designated based on elevation, with a range of 1110-1480 m. Distributed snow depth and snow water equivalent (SWE) observations were collected via monthly manual snow courses from 1 November through 1 April and bi-weekly thereafter. Snow courses spanned 500 m of forested terrain and 500 m of adjacent open terrain. Snow depth observations were collected approximately every 10 m and SWE was measured every 100 m along the snow courses with a federal snow sampler. These data are raw observations and have not been quality controlled in any way. Distance along the transect was estimated in the field. OSU_SnowDepth Summary: 10-minute snow depth observations collected at OSU met stations in the upper McKenzie River Watershed and the Middle Fork Willamette Watershed during Water Years 2012-2014. Each meterological tower was deployed to represent either a forested or an open area at a particular site, and generally the locations were paired, with a meterological station deployed in the forest and in the open area at a single site. These data were collected in conjunction with manual snow course observations, and the meterological stations were located in the approximate center of each forest or open snow course transect. These data have undergone basic quality control. See manufacturer specifications for individual instruments to determine sensor accuracy. This file was compiled from individual raw data files (named "RawData.txt" within each site and year directory) provided by OSU, along with metadata of site attributes. We converted the Excel-based timestamp (seconds since origin) to a date, changed the NaN flags for missing data to NA, and added site attributes such as site name and cover. We replaced positive values with NA, since snow depth values in raw data are negative (i.e., flipped, with some correction to use the height of the sensor as zero). Thus, positive snow depth values in the raw data equal negative snow depth values. Second, the sign of the data was switched to make them positive. Then, the smooth.m (MATLAB) function was used to roughly smooth the data, with a moving window of 50 points. Third, outliers were removed. All values higher than the smoothed values +10, were replaced with NA. In some cases, further single point outliers were removed. OSU_Met Summary: Raw, 10-minute meteorological observations collected at OSU met stations in the upper McKenzie River Watershed and the Middle Fork Willamette Watershed during Water Years 2012-2014. Each meterological tower was deployed to represent either a forested or an open area at a particular site, and generally the locations were paired, with a meterological station deployed in the forest and in the open area at a single site. These data were collected in conjunction with manual snow course observations, and the meteorological stations were located in the approximate center of each forest or open snow course transect. These stations were deployed to collect numerous meteorological variables, of which snow depth and wind speed are included here. These data are raw datalogger output and have not been quality controlled in any way. See manufacturer specifications for individual instruments to determine sensor accuracy. This file was compiled from individual raw data files (named "RawData.txt" within each site and year directory) provided by OSU, along with metadata of site attributes. We converted the Excel-based timestamp (seconds since origin) to a date, changed the NaN and 7999 flags for missing data to NA, and added site attributes such as site name

OSU_SnowCourse Summary: Manual snow course observations were collected over WY 2012-2014 from four paired forest-open sites chosen to span a broad elevation range. Study sites were located in the upper McKenzie (McK) River watershed, approximately 100 km east of Corvallis, Oregon, on the western slope of the Cascade Range and in the Middle Fork Willamette (MFW) watershed, located to the south of the McKenzie. The sites were designated based on elevation, with a range of 1110-1480 m. Distributed snow depth and snow water equivalent (SWE) observations were collected via monthly manual snow courses from 1 November through 1 April and bi-weekly thereafter. Snow courses spanned 500 m of forested terrain and 500 m of adjacent open terrain. Snow depth observations were collected approximately every 10 m and SWE was measured every 100 m along the snow courses with a federal snow sampler. These data are raw observations and have not been quality controlled in any way. Distance along the transect was estimated in the field. OSU_SnowDepth Summary: 10-minute snow depth observations collected at OSU met stations in the upper McKenzie River Watershed and the Middle Fork Willamette Watershed during Water Years 2012-2014. Each meterological tower was deployed to represent either a forested or an open area at a particular site, and generally the locations were paired, with a meterological station deployed in the forest and in the open area at a single site. These data were collected in conjunction with manual snow course observations, and the meterological stations were located in the approximate center of each forest or open snow course transect. These data have undergone basic quality control. See manufacturer specifications for individual instruments to determine sensor accuracy. This file was compiled from individual raw data files (named "RawData.txt" within each site and year directory) provided by OSU, along with metadata of site attributes. We converted the Excel-based timestamp (seconds since origin) to a date, changed the NaN flags for missing data to NA, and added site attributes such as site name and cover. We replaced positive values with NA, since snow depth values in raw data are negative (i.e., flipped, with some correction to use the height of the sensor as zero). Thus, positive snow depth values in the raw data equal negative snow depth values. Second, the sign of the data was switched to make them positive. Then, the smooth.m (MATLAB) function was used to roughly smooth the data, with a moving window of 50 points. Third, outliers were removed. All values higher than the smoothed values +10, were replaced with NA. In some cases, further single point outliers were removed. OSU_Met Summary: Raw, 10-minute meteorological observations collected at OSU met stations in the upper McKenzie River Watershed and the Middle Fork Willamette Watershed during Water Years 2012-2014. Each meterological tower was deployed to represent either a forested or an open area at a particular site, and generally the locations were paired, with a meterological station deployed in the forest and in the open area at a single site. These data were collected in conjunction with manual snow course observations, and the meteorological stations were located in the approximate center of each forest or open snow course transect. These stations were deployed to collect numerous meteorological variables, of which snow depth and wind speed are included here. These data are raw datalogger output and have not been quality controlled in any way. See manufacturer specifications for individual instruments to determine sensor accuracy. This file was compiled from individual raw data files (named "RawData.txt" within each site and year directory) provided by OSU, along with metadata of site attributes. We converted the Excel-based timestamp (seconds since origin) to a date, changed the NaN and 7999 flags for missing data to NA, and added site attributes such as site name

This dataset contains three field seasons of snow-wildlife observations conducted at 707 sites from January 2021 to March 2023 in Washington and Alaska, spanning a broad range of snow conditions. Relatively fresh tracks (usually <24 h) of common large mammal predators (bobcats, coyotes, cougars, and wolves) and their ungulate prey (caribou, Dall sheep, moose, mule deer, and white-tailed deer) were investigated to determine how snow affects predator-prey interactions. The track sink depth and dimensions (width and length) of three consecutive footprints were measured from one individual. Age class was recorded for moose based either on visual confirmation of an individual creating snow tracks or based on track dimensions. The ability to differentiate age classes for smaller ungulates was more uncertain, so age classes for deer, caribou, or sheep were not specified. Animal gait was identified using a simple classification scheme. Data also include animal species, snow density, hardness, total ice, surface temperature, and vegetation type. To best capture snow hardness, surface penetrability and hand-hardness were measured throughout the snowpack. The data are provided in comma-separated values (CSV) format.

Remote camera data on snow presence, snow depth, and wildlife detections on Moscow Mountain in Latah County, ID, USA. Reconyx Hyperfire I and Hyperfire II cameras were used and set to take hourly timelapse images and motion-triggered images. The cameras were deployed from October 2020 - May 2021. Snow presence was assessed up to 15 m from the camera. Snow depth was measured using virtual snow stakes created with the edger R package created by the author. Wildlife were marked as present in all photos in which they appear, and new individuals were counted. Snow density was collected using a federal or prairie snow sampler. Snow hardness was collected using a ram penetrometer. Solar radiation was calculated using hemispherical photographs. Cold-air pooling was approximated using a DEM. These data were used for two purposes: 1) to explore variability in snow disappearance dates in a complex forested terrain, and 2) to examine relationships between white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and mule deer (O. hemionus) and snow properties including snow depth, density, and hardness.

The data set contains snow depth measurements from five study sites in Alaska, USA; data were collected during the March 2023 intensive observation period (IOP) as part of the NASA SnowEx 2023 field campaign. The study sites include three boreal forest sites in the Fairbanks region of central Alaska (the Bonanza Creek Experimental Forest, Caribou Poker Creek watershed, and Farmer’s Loop/Creamer’s Field) and two coastal tundra sites in the North Slope region (Arctic coastal plain and Upper Kuparuk Toolik). Snow depth measurements collected from the study sampling sites during the previous field season are available as SnowEx23 Mar22 IOP Snow Depth Measurements, Version 1.

Results of a citizen science effort in which students and instructors at the McCall Outdoor Science School (MOSS) collected snow observations every 1-4 weeks at their field site within Ponderosa State Park (elevation 1540 m), adjacent to Payette Lake, ID. Students documented snow cover within forested versus open areas at each site via photographs and estimates of the continuity of snow cover. Additionally, snow depth and density were measured via snow pits in the forest and the open. Data were entered via a Google Form, and the results recorded in this table. Site Data Citation for full description of the field campaign and sites. Field photographs are archived along with these data, sorted by site name, with timestamp metadata embeded within the image file. In some cases, cardinal direction of the photograph view is noted in the file name. Site location metatdata for a citizen science effort in which students and instructors at the McCall Outdoor Science School (MOSS) collected snow observations every 1-4 weeks at their field site within Ponderosa State Park (elevation 1540 m), adjacent to Payette Lake, ID.

Results of a citizen science effort in which students and instructors at the McCall Outdoor Science School (MOSS) collected snow observations every 1-4 weeks at their field site within Ponderosa State Park (elevation 1540 m), adjacent to Payette Lake, ID. Students documented snow cover within forested versus open areas at each site via photographs and estimates of the continuity of snow cover. Additionally, snow depth and density were measured via snow pits in the forest and the open. Data were entered via a Google Form, and the results recorded in this table. Site Data Citation for full description of the field campaign and sites. Field photographs are archived along with these data, sorted by site name, with timestamp metadata embeded within the image file. In some cases, cardinal direction of the photograph view is noted in the file name. Site location metatdata for a citizen science effort in which students and instructors at the McCall Outdoor Science School (MOSS) collected snow observations every 1-4 weeks at their field site within Ponderosa State Park (elevation 1540 m), adjacent to Payette Lake, ID.

,Weather, snow, stream, topographic, and vegetation data are presented from the South Mountain Experimental Catchments from water years 2007-2013 (10-1-2007 to 9-30-2013). The data provide detailed information on the weather and hydrologic response for four highly instrumented catchments in the late stages of woodland encroachment. Hourly data from six meteorologic stations and four weirs have been carefully processed and quality checked, are serially complete, and ideal for hydrologic, ecosystem, and biogeochemical modeling. Topographic and vegetation data, as well as stream and drainage area delineations are Lidar-derived. This study site was established in 2007 as a collaborative, long-term research laboratory to address the impacts of western juniper (Juniperus occidentalis Hook) encroachment and treatments in the interior Great Basin region of the western USA.,For more information about this dataset, contact: Patrick R. Kormos: patrick.kormos@ars.usda.gov Danny G. Marks: ars.danny@gmail.com,