Snow returns to Colorado’s high country starting Friday, but the storm’s duration will last one less day yet its intensity remains to produce the same accumulations of 10-16 inches north of Interstate 70; more powder quicker!

The winter storminess active period continues mid-next week and for the first weekend of February, with the southern mountains finally getting well-deserved snowfall.

Recap:

Snowfall was very light across the state for Thursday’s first chairs, with only 1-2 inches of accumulation at a handful of resorts along I-70 and northwards.

Temperatures were cold too, with the National Weather Service in Boulder recording a high of 9 degrees at Copper Mountain and the NWS office in Grand Junction recording a high of 19 degrees in Aspen.

Colorado’s snowpack:

Three factors are emerging regarding the state’s snowpack during January.

1. Colorado’s snowpack peaked at 98% of median average on Jan. 6.

2. Colorado’s snowpack has dropped 10 percentage points since Jan. 12, down from 97% to 87%.

3. Colorado’s two southernmost river basins — the Upper Rio Grande and the San Miguel, Dolores, Animas, and San Juan — have dropped 18 percentage points and 12 percentage points respectively.

Currently, the statewide snowpack is at 88% of the median average, even with the multitude of storms throughout January bringing in snow.

The snow water equivalent as of Jan. 23 is 7.7 inches, which is one inch below the 1991-2020 median average of 8.7 inches for the date.

For comparison, Steamboat Mountain in northern Colorado recorded 54 inches of snow in January alone and 149 inches for the season, whereas Purgatory Mountain Resort in southwestern Colorado has recorded 5 inches of snow in January and 69 inches for the season.

Forecast:

Starting late morning today, a band of snow showers will push into northern Colorado, draping snow onto slopes in the Park and Rabbit Ears ranges around Steamboat, in the Medicine Bow Mountains around Cameron Pass, and along the Front Range Mountains west of Boulder and Estes Park.

Snow will continue to push south to about I-70, delivering snow to ski areas and resorts in Grand, Summit, Eagle, and Garfield counties, with some spillage into northern Park and Lake counties by Saturday morning.

Ski areas and resorts in Pitkin and Chaffee counties are forecast to receive snow Saturday night into Sunday, and places like Telluride and Silverton in the San Juan Mountains should receive lesser amounts of snow on Sunday before the storm peters out Sunday night.

Snowfall accumulations in the northern mountains are forecast to be between 10-16 inches, in the central mountains between 2-5 inches, and in the northern areas of the southern mountains between a trace-2 inches.

Saturday’s temperatures will be fairly colder than Sunday’s will, with highs only in the teens at most places. Sunday’s highs will be warmer, with temperatures in the low 20s.

Monday through Thursday are forecast to be mostly dry, warmer, and sunny in the northern mountains, however, an area of low pressure will push across Arizona and New Mexico and bring much-needed snow to southern Colorado.

The European 12Z forecast model shows snow accumulations from Tuesday morning to Friday morning potentially being substantial in the Wet and Sangre de Cristo mountains, with between 36-48 inches falling by Monday morning. Lesser amounts in the San Juan Mountains are forecast to receive between 4-8 inches for the western side (Purgatory, Silverton/Kendall, and Telluride) and 9-14 inches for the eastern side (Wolf Creek).

The GFS 18z model has the heaviest snow falling in the southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains near the Colorado/New Mexico border and in the San Juan Mountains, with between 10-20 inches of snow.

Long range:

What was going to be a lull in the snow activity from Thursday to Monday, Feb. 3 has now changed to having snow activity across the whole state, and early models suggest a lot of snow is possible.

Starting Friday, snow showers develop in the northern mountains around Steamboat, Rocky Mountain National Park, and in western Clear Creek County.

Snow showers are forecast to continue into Monday, Feb. 3 afternoon. Details from this storm are still rather far out, including accurate snowfall totals, the exact duration of the storm, and the impacts on road conditions.

Today’s 24-hour snow totals from Colorado resorts:

Arapahoe Basin – 0″

Aspen Highlands – 0″

Aspen Mountain – 0″

Beaver Creek – 0″

Breckenridge – 0″

Buttermilk – 0″

Cooper – 0″

Copper Mountain – 0″

Crested Butte – 0″

Echo Mountain – 0″, plus tubing

Eldora Mountain – 0″

Granby Ranch – 0″

Hesperus – Closed for the season

Howelsen Hill – 0″

Kendall Mountain – 0″

Keystone – 0″

Loveland – 0″

Monarch – 0″

Powderhorn – 0″

Purgatory – 0″

Silverton – 0″

Snowmass – 0″

Steamboat – 0″

Sunlight – 0″

Telluride – 0″

Vail – 0″

Winter Park – 0″

Wolf Creek – 0″