Colorado’s first major winter storm is nearly here.
Temperatures overnight Friday dropped below freezing, triggering a freeze warning for the Denver metro area in the morning, and a winter storm warning has been issued for most of the mountains.
A Winter Storm Warning in now in effect for the north central mountains from midnight tonight through noon Sunday. Much of north central and northeast Colorado will see snow Saturday into Sunday.
— NWS Boulder (@NWSBoulder)
Denver temperature forecasts continue to plummet through the weekend, with Sunday’s night’s low now set at 10 degrees. Saturday and Sunday highs are both expected to stay below freezing.
Coming with the temperatures is widespread snow, starting in the mountains Friday night. The winter storm warning is in effect until Sunday; weekend total snowfall could be as much as two feet in some higher-elevation mountains.
Snow in Denver is expected to pick up Saturday, with an 80% chance of snow throughout the day. That’ll pick up to a 100% chance Saturday night.
According to the , there are “high probabilities” for more than four inches of snowfall across the metro area by Sunday.
Denver’s local forecast says between one and three inches could fall during the day Saturday, followed by another three to seven inches Saturday night.
The NWS Boulder office shows a in Denver by Sunday and a 10% chance of eight inches falling.
Forecasters at NWS Boulder still say the “wild card will be the actual snowfall amounts,” though, and forecasts are likely to change as the snow approaches.
A localized banded snowfall is expected to set up during the storm, giving some areas a higher chance of receiving more snow than other nearby areas, forecasters said.
The heaviest band of snowfall looks to be along Interstate 70 through the mountains and straight through Denver. About a foot of snow could fall along this band.
A lesser band looks to run through Larimer county and another south across the Palmer Divide.
The winter storm will be in and out of Denver in a day, with skies clearing up by midday Sunday.
The clear skies still don’t mean the end of wintry weather, though, as Sunday’s low will be the coldest of the weekend at just 10 degrees. Monday will warm up slightly during the day with a high of 42 degrees, but the low is expected to be in the teens.
After Monday, temperatures will continue to rise, with highs reaching the upper 50s by Wednesday and lows in the upper 20s.
