Colorado’s snow forecast favors the San Juans for the largest accumulations, with a warm Sunday giving way to colder mountain snow Monday. Elevation will matter more than the snowfall map initially suggests, with rain at lower elevations and dense snow higher up. Wolf Creek currently has about 30% of its terrain open, while Arapahoe Basin reports one lift and one run open, so expectations should remain rooted in early-season coverage.
Saturday’s lingering San Juan showers taper before a much wetter reload arrives overnight into Sunday. Moist southwest flow favors the southern mountains first, with precipitation expanding toward the central and northern mountains Sunday night. Snow levels across the southwest will generally hover around 10,000 to 12,000 feet Sunday, leaving lower slopes vulnerable to rain while higher terrain collects heavy, wet snow. Temperatures near freezing or above and very low snow ratios support dense base building rather than light powder. Southwest gusts of 30 to 50 mph across exposed southern terrain will further limit snow quality. Guidance strongly supports the storm’s arrival and subsequent cooling, although substantial differences in precipitation intensity leave southern snowfall amounts less certain than the overall sequence.
Monday brings the most widespread accumulating snow as colder air lowers snow levels and the storm shifts across Colorado. Snow levels fall toward roughly 7,000 to 9,000 feet across western Colorado, while parts of the southern mountains may remain closer to 9,000 to 10,000 feet early Monday. Mountain temperatures settle into the 20s and lower 30s, allowing a less dense finish over Sunday’s wet snow. Additional accumulation through Tuesday evening reaches 13-18 in at Wolf Creek and 10-14 in at Telluride, with smaller totals across the central and northern mountains. Most meaningful accumulation ends Monday night. Tuesday favors drying, although a few light leftovers may persist along the Continental Divide and in the northern mountains. Colder overnight temperatures should help preserve snow higher up, while previously wet surfaces can refreeze…