Again, unsettled weather to start the workweek
Sunday, May 4, 2025
Mostly sunny skies and temperatures already in the mid-sixties, on the way toward seventy degrees, are over Steamboat Springs late this Sunday morning. Invading clouds this afternoon and a stray shower will begin a cooler, but still mild period of unsettled weather that will last through midweek.
A storm that crossed the West Coast yesterday has split, with the southern end forming an eddy over southern California. The eddy is forecast to move toward the Four Corners by Monday night and wobble into the eastern Colorado plains by Wednesday. Moisture from both the Pacific behind the storm and the Gulf of Mexico ahead of the storm will bring beneficial precipitation to Colorado, with limited cold air confining snow accumulations to above 8,500′.
Though some showers moving from the southeast may accompany the invading clouds this afternoon, the best precipitation should occur from later Monday through Tuesday as a cool front associated with the northern part of the split storm grazes our area Monday night. Precipitation will continue through Tuesday evening as the eddy slowly wobbles across Colorado, though amounts in the valley will be modest and only amount to several tenths of an inch. Better precipitation is expected at the higher elevations, though snowfall amounts here should only total several inches at and above pass level. Much higher totals are possible for the open ski areas to our east and south.
Additional energy and moisture will rotate counterclockwise around the eddy on Wednesday, briefly elongating it back westward and over our area, keeping clouds and afternoon showers around. A modest ridge of high pressure ahead of another advancing and strong storm in the Gulf of Alaska will force the eddy east of Colorado by Thursday, perhaps bringing some sun for the morning, but leaving chances for afternoon and evening showers.
The ridge of high pressure is forecast to build eastward and merge with another ridge of high pressure forecast to form over the Great Lakes, behind the northern part of the split storm that brought the cool front through our area earlier on Monday night. Interestingly, moisture will be carried northward and over our area for Friday and the weekend as winds rotate clockwise around the high pressure, leaving chances for afternoon and evening storms and foreshadowing the arrival of the summer North American Monsoon.
Cold air is lacking with the eddy, with high temperatures falling into the mid-sixties on Monday and near sixty degrees on Tuesday, the coolest day of the week, and just below our average of 62 F. Wednesday will be a degree or two warmer, with mid-sixties on Thursday and near seventy degrees on Friday. Let’s hope for beneficial precipitation to start the week, as our rapidly diminishing snowpack is just under two-thirds of average, and check back for more details on what is looking like a pleasant weekend in my next regularly scheduled weather narrative on Thursday afternoon.
Another gorgeous weekend ahead
Thursday, May 1, 2025
Temperatures are in the low-fifties with partly cloudy skies in Steamboat Springs late this Thursday afternoon. A departing storm will give way to another gorgeous spring weekend to start May with temperatures approaching seventy degrees. Enjoy the pleasant weather as, similar to last weekend, unsettled weather will return as soon as Sunday night.
Winter moved back into the area last Sunday night, bringing two inches of snow in town, five inches at mid-mountain and six inches up top. While that was more snow than predicted in last Sunday’s weather narrative, the cold front late Wednesday was less productive for our area as it settled over the central mountains, bringing only a half-inch at mid-mountain and two inches up top, but leaving today’s temperatures below our average of sixty degrees.
That storm split, with the piece left behind ending up over southern California, and too far south to affect our weather this weekend. So a building ridge of high pressure ahead of another strong storm extending south from the Gulf of Alaska will bring mostly sunny skies for most of the weekend, with high temperatures rising into the low-sixties on Friday, upper-sixties on Saturday, and to around seventy degrees on Sunday.
The incoming storm is forecast to split as it crosses the West Coast late Saturday, forming an eddy at the southern end that will move to Arizona and Utah on Monday. Clouds will invade our area ahead of the storm by Sunday afternoon, with some rain showers possible by the end of the day, but more likely holding off until Sunday night.
There is a lot of uncertainty for next week regarding not only the track of the incoming eddy and its residence time in the West, but also the amount of cold air that wraps into the back of the storm and the amount of moisture ingested into the front of the storm.
Most of the uncertainty in moisture is due to the leftover eddy now in California that is forecast to move along the Mexican border this weekend. Interestingly, by the beginning of the workweek, counter-clockwise winds around the eddy may draw moisture from the Gulf of Mexico northwestward and into the new storm.
So enjoy what promises to be stellar weather for most of the first weekend in May, and check back for more details on what could be a wet start to the upcoming workweek.
Unsettled weather to return tonight and persist through the workweek
Sunday, April 27, 2025
Sunny morning skies have yielded to clouds this Sunday mid-afternoon in Steamboat Springs ahead of an advancing storm that will start a workweek of unsettled weather. High temperatures now in the mid-sixties will tumble into the low-fifties on Monday, accompanied by a chance for precipitation, with some morning snowflakes possible in town. Warmer temperatures are forecast for the rest of the workweek despite another possible storm on Wednesday.
Our beautiful spring weekend is ending as a storm in the Great Basin approaches the area. The storm is the southern end of a wave that formed an eddy as it traveled across California earlier in the weekend, and will bring a cold front through our area tonight. Precipitation will be light, with perhaps as much as an inch or two of snowfall on the hill and some snowflakes in town Monday morning. Chances for showers persist Monday afternoon as another cold front associated with the northern end of the wave grazes our area, keeping high temperatures in the low-fifties, below our average of 59 F.
The eddy is forecast to dissipate as pieces of the storm head both southeast and northeast, bringing a mostly sunny Tuesday morning and a small chance for some afternoon showers as temperatures warm back to average.
Meanwhile, another storm from the Aleutian Islands is forecast to cross the Vancouver coast on Tuesday and Idaho early Wednesday, dragging a cold front through our area Wednesday afternoon. The arrival later in the day will spare the town snow, but there are good chances for precipitation through Thursday morning, with snowfall of 2-5” possible at and above 9000′.
Showers may linger during the afternoon, but should clear overnight, leading to a mostly sunny start to a warmer Friday with high temperatures reaching the mid-sixties. There is uncertainty regarding showers later in the day, depending on the proximity of a small eddy over the Great Basin formed from the southern end of the midweek storm.
That eddy and the uncertain evolution of another storm near the Dateline will determine our weather for next weekend, and I’ll have more details about that in my next regularly scheduled weather narrative on Thursday afternoon. In the meantime, let’s hope we can accumulate some more late-season snowpack this week (and possibly next week - stay tuned!), as the Yampa-White-Little Snake river basin is only 71% of average after reaching 96% of average on April 7.
Beautiful spring weekend ahead
Thursday, April 24, 2025
After a mostly sunny morning in Steamboat Springs, temperatures this Thursday mid-afternoon are around sixty degrees with a few rumbles of thunder and sprinkles of rain. Friday will be several degrees warmer and drier before mostly sunny skies and temperatures approaching seventy degrees grace the last weekend of April.
Today will be the final day the stationary front just to our north will influence our weather this workweek. Some energy moving across the northern Rockies and over the front encouraged today’s showers, but southwest winds ahead of a splitting storm extending south from the Gulf of Alaska will bring dry air from the Desert Southwest toward our area starting Friday. Though some clouds may be around during the day, warmer air from the south should allow temperatures to rise into the mid-sixties.
Meanwhile, the southern end of the splitting storm will form an eddy off the coast of northern California on Friday. The eddy is forecast to rotate across central California early Saturday before moving across Nevada and approaching Utah by Sunday. Breezes will increase ahead of the storm on Saturday and more so on Sunday as temperatures reach the upper-sixties under mostly sunny skies Saturday and most of Sunday.
Enjoy the beautiful spring weekend as the approaching eddy is forecast to split and elongate to the southwest on Monday, bringing increasing clouds by Sunday afternoon and a cold front with possible precipitation as soon as Sunday night. There is some uncertainty regarding precipitation due to the splitting storm and how much energy is partitioned into the northern and southern streams, with a cooler Monday accompanied by possibly unsettled weather according to the American GFS, but not the European ECMWF. High temperatures will drop about fifteen degrees from Sunday into the low-fifties and below our average of 59 F.
Temperatures look to rebound toward average on Tuesday, with high uncertainty regarding a wave of energy and moisture currently moving across the Aleutian Islands that may bring more unsettled weather by midweek. I’ll have more details about that in my next regularly scheduled weather narrative on Sunday afternoon.
Typical spring weather to return this workweek
Sunday, April 20, 2025
High clouds are filtering the sunshine late this Sunday morning in Steamboat Springs, with temperatures in the low forties in town and low twenties at the top of the Steamboat Ski Resort. Temperatures will warm about five degrees each day from about fifty degrees today to the mid-sixties by Thursday. Clouds will come and go as is typical with spring weather, with chances for some afternoon showers.
After a brief wintry spell brought a last powder day on Friday, with about six inches of snow up top and a low temperature of twelve degrees on Friday morning, and an additional two inches overnight and eight degrees on Saturday morning, the Steamboat Ski Resort is ending the season with 303” of snowfall and a 42” base at mid-mountain, and a 94” base with an estimate of just over 400” up top.
The storm that brought the snowfall is moving across the Oklahoma-Kansas border, but moisture from another storm crossing the Pacific Northwest coast is already moving overhead. Clouds will thicken today, with some peeks of sun and a chance for an afternoon shower as temperatures reach fifty degrees.
The storm and additional trailing energy and moisture are forecast to stay mostly north of our area as they rotate through the northern Rockies through the workweek, but afternoon shower chances will be with us through Thursday as temperatures slowly warm into the mid-fifties on Monday, around sixty degrees on Tuesday, and the mid-sixties on Wednesday and Thursday.
A weak storm moving through the Bering Sea may bring a better chance for showers on Friday, but the lack of cold air won’t impact our temperatures. However, uncertainty is high around a stronger and colder storm that follows for the end of the weekend or early the following week.
Enjoy Closing Day at the Steamboat Ski Resort today, and check back on Thursday afternoon for more details on next weekend’s weather in my next regularly scheduled weather narrative.
