Summary:

On Monday and Tuesday, clouds and frequent rain showers will cover the mountains, then a cold front will hit the front range on Thursday with very chilly temperatures for Friday morning. Snow will accumulate on some peaks on Tuesday night, and flakes could also fall in the eastern foothills on Thursday night.

Details:

The moisture surge is working its way into Colorado this morning with rain showers showing up on radar over our mountains and extending back to Utah, Nevada, California, and especially Arizona.

^{Monday morning radar. Source: Weathertap.com}

The most likely time for heavier and steadier rain in the mountains will be from Monday night through Wednesday morning when we could measure about 1-3 inches of rain. There might be a few flakes of high-elevation snow (above 13,000ft) on Monday and Tuesday, but the best chance of mountain snow will be on Tuesday night above about 11,000ft. Wednesday will be a much drier day, but clouds could hug the peaks of the central and northern mountains with some leftover showers.

The American GFS model is predicting a few inches of rain for most mountain areas. Don't focus on the points of heavier rain -- this isn't necessarily accurate and is a reflection of the model's lower resolution. Source: Weatherbell.com

For Thursday and Friday, the weather in the mountains will be rather tranquil while the action shifts to the east of the mountains. A strong cold front will push in from the north on Thursday which will drop temperatures into the 30s on Thursday night through Friday morning.

It is possible that the foothills east of the divide and some higher-elevations of the plains could see some snow flakes on Thursday night. It's also possible that some locations on the plains drop to close to freezing on Thursday night, with a good chance of this happening above about 6,000ft. This forecast is colder than previous forecasts as the models have been trending a bit chillier, and they also tend to underestimate the strength of the cold air.

Temperature difference from average on Friday morning. The average low temperature in Denver is about 50 degrees, and actual readings could be closer to 35 degrees. Source: Weatherbell.com

By midday Friday, clouds will clear east of the mountains and the whole state should see a dry and sunny day. Saturday should also be dry and sunny for the entire state. Then mountain showers could return for Sunday and Monday, but I have low confidence in the forecast after Saturday.

JOEL GRATZ