Date: 02/28/2020

Get out there and work on those goggle tans. Another classic Crested Butte day with warm temperatures, light winds, and clear skies. High pressure and warm, dry weather will continue through the weekend. Sunday is our next chance for mountain snowfall, however, more and more this is looking like somewhat of a non-event in the Elk Mountains. Potential for a small refresh is all we can hope for at this point, but more unsettled weather looks possible early next week. March looks to arrive like a lamb this year.…

Date: 02/27/2020

A weak shortwave trough located just east of the divide moved through overnight bringing a slightly warmer air mass, high clouds and very light snowfall to the highest elevations. As this trough quickly departs the region today, expect drier air to filter in with NW flow remaining in place. Light to moderate winds with occasional stronger gusts will be seen as the jet stream remains overhead.

Tonight will be clear, cold and calm as the ridge continues to push east ahead of our next weather maker. On Friday flow will begin to transition towards the SW as a large trough of low pressure makes it way onto the west coast. This system looks to cut off from the main flow and track southward across our area through the weekend which will increase our chances of measurable snowfall.…

Date: 02/26/2020

Overnight low temperatures are around the negative teens in the valleys and negative single digits in the mountains. For both Wednesday and Thursday, we’ll continue sitting under cold north to northwest flow. 11,000ft temperatures should rebound to near 20 degrees and the sun will sure help fight the cold. Unfortunately, the pressure gradient aloft doesn’t fully relax so we’ll still have that bitter cold northerly winds at upper elevations.

For the cloud forecast, Wednesday is starting out nice and clear. By the afternoon there is moisture pushing into northern Colorado and we can expect increasing clouds in the afternoon. A similar trend looks to be in the forecast for Thursday.

A high-pressure ridge moves in on Friday and we’ll see dry weather and rising temperatures. The next Pacific storm will be brewing off the cost over the weekend and we’ll moisture pushing in by Sunday and a return to snow in the forecast.…

Date: 02/25/2020

A ridge of high-pressure is sitting to our west and a trough of low-pressure is off to our east. While Colorado is chilling right in the middle under cold northerly flow. Thankfully, the strongest upper-level winds look to also mostly stay to our west on Tuesday and that may help the wind forecast keep from getting too out of hand. 11,000ft winds will still hang in the 10 to 20mph range and we could see some stronger gusts moving through. We also have enough moisture overhead to keep some clouds in the forecast and the chance for some light snowfall at times.

The sky clears by Tuesday night and the overnight temperatures are going to plummet. Mostly clear sky rolls into Wednesday, while we may see a few more clouds in the afternoon as another blob of moisture tries to drop into our area.

By Friday we look to slide under a flatting high-pressure ridge that should keep the forecast area dry as we start the weekend.…

Date: 02/24/2020

A cold system is moving down from the northern Rockies today with an associated jet stream. Light snowfall will accumulate from today through tonight and possibly drips into Tuesday but totals are looking fairly lean. Snowfall will be focused on the highest terrain to the west and north of Crested Butte. Moderate to strong northwest winds will continue to blow through Tuesday moving the new snow around. Temperatures will be significantly colder than the past few days with highs in the teens and lows reaching below zero at night.

An additional weak system is forecasted to move through the area on Wednesday night into Thursday followed by a building ridge at the end of the week. Temperatures should rebound with warmer air moving in from the southwest for the end of the workweek and weekend.…

Date: 02/23/2020

The advertised closed low-pressure system has pushed a plume of moisture into the area and produced around 1 to 4 inches of new snow as of 4:20 AM. The low is still centered well to our west and will head eastward today. Expect moderate snowfall to continue during daylight hours today, comfortable air temperatures in the mid to upper twenties, and moderate wind speeds. Around mid-day, the flow will shift from southwest to the northwest as the low moves eastward. This system will offer a nice refresh to conditions and cover up the recently formed crusts on the south half of the compass. Wind speeds will remain modest but will have just enough gusto to transport the new snow at upper elevations. Closed low-pressure systems are often difficult to predict; this storm as of 5AM is already overproducing so prepared for the possibility of more snow than expected.

On Monday another system will bring snowfall to the area under northwest flow. Accumulating snowfall will linger from Monday through much of the daylight hours on Tuesday. Areas that are favorable for northwest flow events might do fairly well with this two day period of snowfall. We will keep you up to speed as this system gets closer.…

Date: 02/22/2020

As of 0500, all remote weather stations are above zero! Valley inversions are still hanging on, with valley locations sitting in the single digits and ridge tops basking the low 20s. Westerly alpine winds continue to blow in the 20mph range, keeping things brisk up high.

Expect clouds to really to increase across our forecast area after about 11am as the closed low spinning up from Arizona approaches. The San Juans will be most favored by this incoming storm, but for less than 24hrs out, there remains a lot of model uncertainty. Temperatures will be on the warmer side, with potential valley rain (below 8000ft) early on before changing over to snow. Snow should start to fall across the higher terrain late tonight, and continue until around sunset Sunday. Accumulations look to range from 4-8” with this storm, with another disturbance dropping out of the Pacific Northwest for Monday, bringing with it stronger winds, a little more snowfall, and much colder air.…

Date: 02/21/2020

Another clear, calm day is on tap for the Elk Mountains today. High clouds may drift into our area as the closed low in the southwest inches closer. this afternoon.   This weekend, the San Juans and more southerly mountains will be favored, but these closed low circulations are notoriously more fickle, and a slight change in trajectory to the north may produce more snow than the 3-6” currently expected by Sunday. Clouds will increase throughout the afternoon Saturday, with a decent shot of snowfall to be expected Sunday through early next week. A lot of uncertainty remains and details will hopefully align between models within the next 24 hours. Stay tuned.…

Date: 02/20/2020

Thursday is setting up to be a beautiful day. Clear sky, light winds, high temps in the mid-20’s and that strong sun making it feel even warmer. A brief high-pressure ridge will be overhead on Thursday and Friday. We may see a few clouds on Friday, but it is also looking like another wonderful day.

The next change in the weather will come from a low-pressure system that will be moving across California on Friday and pushing moister into Colorado on southwest flow by Saturday. At the moment, Saturday looks like increasing cloud cover with accumulating snow not starting until late Saturday. Winds will also be on the increase Saturday. Looks like we’ll have a nice refresh of snow by Sunday morning and snowfall contenting through Sunday. We’ll start looking at those numbers tomorrow morning.…

Date: 02/19/2020

Today will bring increased cloud cover to the area as a very weak disturbance passes over southern Colorado. There is a chance for a couple of snowflakes to get squeezed out around Crested Butte in the afternoon but no accumulations are expected. A cooler air mass is working into the area dropping temperatures a few degrees from yesterday. Cloud cover will dissipate Wednesday night and Thursday morning. Mostly clear skies and warming temperatures will greet us for Thursday and Friday. A low-pressure system is expected to stumble towards the Four-Corners region on Saturday afternoonish and will bring with it the next chance at accumulating snowfall. Storm systems that track through the Four Corners region are generally no big snowfall producers for Crested Butte. We will keep an eye on the trajectory of this storm and keep you up to speed over the next couple of days.…