Today’s Forecast:
A High Impact Winter Storm will hit Colorado today and leave Wednesday afternoon.
This storm is going to be a heavy hitter for the western mountains, Pikes Peak Region, Denver metro, and most of the plains north of the Palmer Divide.
We will see a warm front push scattered rain and snow showers across the plains and up into the Pikes Peak Region late this afternoon. We won't see snowfall begin to accumulate in the Pikes Peak Region and Denver until after 6 pm. The snow will continue to fall and accumulate overnight between the Pikes Peak Region and Denver through the first half of Wednesday, at which point the storm will drift east.
Sharp snow cut-offs are expected across the Pikes Peak Region with very little if any accumulation across the Highway 50 corridor tonight and tomorrow. Downtown Colorado Springs could see 1 to 3 inches, but Monument and Black Forest could range from 4 to 9 inches!
Stay tuned to changes today as most models even at 6 am this morning were still showing large snow total differences.
Colorado Springs forecast: High: 44; Low: 22. Mostly cloudy and breezy with highs in the mid 40s. We'll see scattered afternoon rain and snow showers in the afternoon with accumulating snow generally after 6 pm tonight. Snow totals will range pretty aggressively across town. Downtown could see 1 to 3 inches, Briargate 2 to 5, Manitou 2 to 4, Falcon 2 to 5, and the airport 1 to 3 inches. The totals will be much higher on the north side of town, especially north of Briargate.
Pueblo forecast: High: 51; Low: 25. Mostly cloudy and mild with isolated rain showers in the mid-afternoon. Pueblo should see an inch or less of snow tonight through Wednesday.
Canon City forecast: High: 49; Low: 28. Mostly cloudy and breezy with scattered rain showers in the afternoon. Canon City should see an inch or less of snow with similar totals across Florence and Penrose.
Woodland Park forecast: High: 38; Low: 15. Cloudy and cold with a brief rain to snow mix turning very quickly to snow in the mid-afternoon. Snow accumulations will start generally after 4 pm and continue off and on through the first half of Wednesday. Woodland Park could see
Tri-Lakes forecast: High: 30s; Low: 10s. Cloudy and cold today with afternoon rain or snow showers. Most accumulating snow is expected anytime after 6 pm with heavy accumulations through the first half of Wednesday. As the winds increase late tonight, blizzard-like conditions are expected for travel between the Tri-Lakes region and Denver. A general range of 5 to 9 inches is possible in the Tri-Lakes region with similar totals around Black Forest.
Plains forecast: High: 50s; Low: 20s. We could see scattered rain showers this afternoon with gusty and mostly dry weather overnight, other than a few stray non-accumulating flurries. We'll be dry and warm ahead of any moisture in the early afternoon.
Walsenburg and Trinidad forecast: High: 50s; Low: 20s. Windy and warm with scattered rain showers in the afternoon. We will barely see any snow tonight or early tomorrow, mainly just colder and windy conditions.
Mountains forecast: High: 30s; Low: 10s. Dangerous mountain travel is expected today with widespread Winter Weather Advisories and Winter Storm Warnings. 1 to 2 feet of snow could fall across the San Juans through Wednesday with 5 to 10 inches along I-70. Most major passes like Monarch Pass, Wolf Creek Pass, and Vail Pass will be extremely dangerous over the next 24 hours.
Extended outlook forecast:
The Winter Storm will hit hard overnight through the first half of Wednesday here in southern Colorado. The winds will start to gust between 30 to 40 mph from Denver to the Pikes Peak region early Wednesday morning with gusts spreading south through the day.
The commutes between the Pikes Peak Region and Denver, Limon, and Sterling tonight through Wednesday will be dangerous, and even impossible if we see snow safety closures on I-70, I-76, or even I-25 northbound.
Highway 50 tonight and tomorrow will see very little impact from snow. What little accumulation we get won't be enough for travel impacts, maybe just some visibility issues at times tomorrow as the winds increase.
We should be dry Thursday with a few flurries by Friday.
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Curious about the First Alert 5 Weather Storm Impact Scale? Check out our cheatsheet explainer.
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