I-70 Daily Snow

Heads up, there may be fresher snow! Read the latest I-70 Daily Snow

By Sam Collentine, Meteorologist Posted 5 years ago April 19, 2018

One Last Hurrah

Update

No major changes to discuss as healthy totals take aim for Colorado from Thursday night through Saturday. Increasing clouds and breezy conditions will be the story on Thursday ahead of the fun beginning on Thursday night.

Thursday night and especially Friday morning and into Friday afternoon will be the wildcard as hit-and-miss cells of very intense snow move across the I-70 mountain corridor. 1-2 inch rates/hour will be possible from Thursday night through midday Friday ahead of continued chances for moderate to heavy snow through Friday night. Expected reduced visibility, snow-packed road surfaces, and accidents/road closures through Friday along the mountain corridor. 

Friday night will then be the time to watch for the storm to wrap-around southern Colorado and provide areas along and east of the divide with the best chance for deep totals but due to the strength of this system, heavy spillover snow could still reach areas west of the Eisenhower Tunnel. Keep a close eye on the I-70 webcams and wake up early if you're chasing fresh snow on Saturday morning. 

In total, look for 8-16 inches from Thursday night through midday Saturday, with wrap-around snow possibly giving us a nice layer of fluff on Saturday morning. Friday afternoon will provide fresh turns but I would get up and get after it on Saturday morning for the best turns.

For travel, icy, slushy, and snow-packed road surfaces will be encountered from Thursday night through Saturday morning, with very slow travel speeds from the foothills west of Denver through the Eisenhower Tunnel. Give yourself plenty of extra travel time, make sure your vehicle is prepared with snow tires, AWD/4WD, and/or an alternative traction device, and remember to keep an eye on CDOT for the latest updates.

CDOT: http://opsw.co/cdotalerts

Following the fun from Thursday night through Saturday morning, clear skies will prevail on Saturday evening. This will then be followed by a beautiful day on Sunday, with sunny skies and daytime highs in the upper 30s. Wet and icy road surfaces will still be encountered through Saturday night ahead of clear and dry surfaces by midday Sunday.

Looking further ahead, other than a chance for light snow next Tuesday, April 24th, the pattern looks relatively quiet. I'm sure another storm or two will swing through Colorado in May but we'll just have to wait and see. 

Thanks for reading, travel safe, and stay tuned!

SAM COLLENTINE

Announcements

I-70 Closing Dates

Arapahoe Basin: Early June 

Beaver Creek: Sunday, April 15th (CLOSED)

Breckenridge: Sunday, April 22nd

Copper Mountain: Sunday, April 15th (CLOSED)

Echo Mountain: Sunday, April 15th (CLOSED)

Keystone: Sunday, April 8th (CLOSED)

Loveland: Sunday, May 6th

Vail: Sunday, April 15th (CLOSED)

Winter Park: Sunday, May 6th (Mary Jane Territory)

About Our Forecaster

Sam Collentine

Meteorologist

Sam Collentine is the Chief Operating Officer of OpenSnow and lives in Basalt, Colorado. Before joining OpenSnow, he studied Atmospheric Science at the University of Colorado, spent time at Channel 7 News in Denver, and at the National Weather Service in Boulder.

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