Chase Powder Daily Snow
By Powderchaser Steve, Forecaster Posted 4 years ago December 9, 2019
Heavy snow in the extended forecast for the Northwest/BC and Rockies. Sierra wildcard.
Summary
We are on the tail end of a storm cycle that just landed 2-3 feet for the Sierra and roughly a foot in many areas of the Rockies. The week ahead will get very active for the Northwest and Coastal BC who really need snow. That system hits the Rockies by Friday extending itself into the weekend. The Sierra is a wildcard
Short Term Forecast
Snow showers are continuing this morning in Colorado and Utah with amounts in the past 24 hours generally around a foot in many locations in the Cottonwoods in Utah and most of west central Colorado.
The Tetons who I highlighted last week came up short Saturday night (0-1 inches) but quickly caught up during Sunday (11 inches at Targhee). My original forecast was 4-8 Saturday night and 4-8 Sunday. The Euro showed moisture favoring the northern Teton Range and areas further towards Yellowstone. The GFS and Canadian had the bullseye over the ski areas Saturday night. Snow increased in the Tetons on Sunday with nearly a foot at upper elevations. That's within range of my forecast, however timing for an overnight dump for Sunday morning was a missed forecast.
The Wasatch had similar amounts to the Tetons at the upper elevations (Most of this fell during Sunday).
Brighton: 12 inches
Alta: 10 inches
Park City: 9 inches
Snowbasin: 5 inches
In Colorado, the highest amounts were found in the western portions of I-70 as well as the central and north San Juan ranges. Winds started out from the SW (Good for the southern San Juan range), shifted to the West (Good for Crested Butte, Breckenridge) before shifting to the NW (Great for Telluride, Vail, Snowmass, Aspen). Moisture got hung up over Aspen for several hours last night (4 PM-9 PM) with 2-3 per hour snowfall rates. High Precipitation rates were also noted over Telluride and Vail in the 9-11 PM range.
Schofield Pass: 15”
Aspen Highlands: 14”
Aspen Mountain: 12”
Snowmass: 12”
Telluride: 12”
Breckenridge: 9”
Buttermilk: 9”
Crested Butte: 9”
Vail: 8”
Bottom Line: Hopefully you are in line this morning in Colorado scoring some fresh powder. Look for new terrain openings! Conditions were really good yesterday in Utah where I scored some great storm skiing at Snowbird. Today will see a light refresh from last night (1-3 inches).
Extended Forecast
The models continue to advertise a decent system moving into Coastal BC by Thursday morning. Its likely that 1-2 feet or more fall over Whistler late this week. Interior BC will see several periods of moderate events. Decent amounts (12-18 inches or more) are in the cards for the Washington and Oregon Cascades especially Friday/Saturday. Its too early to speculate on exact timing and pinpoint ski areas. All resorts in the PNW should do well with snow levels low enough for base elevation snow. interior BC will also see snowfall.
Below: Snowfall for the Pacific Northwest through Friday night (10-20 inches or more are likely in some areas).
The northern and central Rockies, including the Panhandle of Idaho, all will score powder late this week into the weekend. There should be some great chase opportunities beginning Friday in the Rockies and lingering well into the weekend.
The Euro shows moisture dropping south into the Sierra where the GFS keep most of the action north. It's likely the Sierra will score additional powder, with confidence lacking on amounts.
Enjoy the powder everyone. We are off to the a good start in many areas! Hopefully the PNW catches up!
Powderchaser Steve
About Our Forecaster
Powderchaser Steve
Forecaster
Powderchaser Steve has over 45 years of experience chasing storms based on his weather and local knowledge of resorts on both the East and West Coasts. His snow intel will likely land him at the deepest resort and almost never missing "First Chair" in the process. Follow "The Chase" on OpenSnow to find out where the deepest snow may be falling.
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