Weather
Minor wind-blown snow hangs on Sunday, then Colorado settles into a dry, increasingly warm spring pattern for most of the week. The best chance for a quick refresh is along the northern and central Divide, while the southern mountains see little from this cycle. After a few lingering Monday night snow showers, the story shifts to softer afternoons, lighter winds, and temperatures rising well above normal through Saturday before a much lower-confidence storm signal reappears early next week.
Through Sunday, guidance is tightly clustered on timing: the overnight cold shot is already moving out, and lingering snow shuts down from north to south by midday with gusty ridge winds still the main issue. Most resorts pick up only a minor refresh, but Loveland, Arapahoe Basin, and Winter Park have the best shot at useful leftovers. The southern mountains, including Wolf Creek and Telluride, are largely on the fringes. Intensity spread is still noticeable, with the wetter camp squeezing out a bit more along the Divide, but all guidance keeps this as a light event rather than a true reset. Snow levels stay far below resort bases while it is snowing, so precipitation falls as snow everywhere, and snow quality is fairly good with snow-to-liquid ratios generally in the 12-18 range. Expect resort temperatures mostly in the teens and 20s early, highs mainly in the 20s to near 30, and plenty of exposed-lift gusts in the 40-60 mph range this morning before easing later.
Monday is a transition day, with a partial warm-up, lighter wind overall, and only spotty follow-up snow chances focused on the Divide by late day and Monday night. This is where guidance begins to diverge on intensity more than timing. Several solutions keep the second wave limited to nuisance snow showers, while the wetter camp adds a bit more around the northern Divide and nearby I-70 crest. Snow quality also trends less fluffy in this second round, with ratios more often in the 9-14 range, so any fresh snow will be a bit denser than Sunday’s. Snow levels rise into roughly 7,500-9,000 feet while it is snowing, but that still keeps nearly all ski terrain cold enough for snow. By Tuesday through Saturday, guidance comes back into strong agreement on a dry ridge, lighter day-to-day weather, and a sharp warm-up. Resort highs climb from the 30s and 40s Tuesday into the 40s and 50s by midweek and late week, with quick spring softening by late morning and afternoon. Confidence is strongest from Sunday morning through Saturday night.
After Saturday, confidence drops quickly because the ridge looks less stable and the next storm signal is still poorly resolved. There is a reasonable case for snow returning sometime from late Sunday into Tuesday next week, and the more favored terrain again looks like the northern and central mountains. But timing, coverage, and intensity are not lined up yet. One guidance cluster brings a modest shot of several inches to the more favored Divide and I-70 resorts, while another keeps most areas with only light snow or delays better precipitation farther out. With the warm pattern leading into that period, any early snow would likely start on the denser side rather than as light powder. For now, the practical takeaway is simple: expect a spring ski week after this morning’s cleanup, and treat the early next week storm chance as something to monitor rather than chase hard yet.
Resort Forecast Totals (Sun Mar 15 – Tue Mar 17)
- Loveland – 2″-3″
- Arapahoe Basin – 2″
- Winter Park – 1″-2″
- Steamboat – 1″-2″
- Vail – 1″-2″
- Beaver Creek – 1″-2″
- Copper Mountain – 1″
- Breckenridge – 1″
- Snowmass – 1″
- Crested Butte – 0″
- Monarch – 0″
- Telluride – 0″
- Wolf Creek – 0″
