Colorado Daily Snow

Heads up, there may be fresher snow! Read the latest Colorado Daily Snow

By Joel Gratz, Founding Meteorologist Posted 3 years ago May 24, 2020

It’s Snowing Now (Sun, May 24) + Arapahoe Basin Reopening (Wed, May 27)

Update

I hope that you have been safe and made the most of the last two months of non-lift-serviced time.

We are about to turn a corner, though, as a few lifts in Colorado will begin to spin at Arapahoe Basin on Wednesday, May 27th.

Please read all of the details here: https://www.arapahoebasin.com/may27-reopening/

The short story is that if you want to ride the lifts, you need a reservation. I have confirmed that uphill access is open from 400pm – 800am, requires an Arapahoe Basin Uphill Access Pass, and that there is no reservation required for uphill access (but you need an uphill access pass).

Again, please read all of the details because the experience will greatly differ from a normal day at the mountain.

Weatherwise, between my last post on April 26 and today on May 24, temperatures have been warmer than average and conditions have been drier than average.

This warmth has led to a rapid melt of our snowpack. Statewide, we are melting at a rate of about 7-10 days ahead of average.

But the warmth is taking a break for about one day. Temperatures now on Sunday, May 24th are colder than 32°F above about 10,000 feet. The cold temperatures are mostly confined to the mountains near and east of the divide and around and north of I-70.

These cold temperatures are allowing snow to fall, which is colored in blue on the Sunday afternoon radar.

On-the-ground cams confirm that the radar presentation is correct and that snow is accumulating. The snow stake cam at Arapahoe Basin shows about 2 inches as of Sunday, May 24 at 130pm.

Snow accumulations at Arapahoe Basin and surrounding mountains will likely be in the 3-8 inch range with snow continuing through late Sunday night.

Looking ahead, by the time Arapahoe Basin reopens on Wednesday, May 27th, we’ll be back to warm and mostly dry weather with on-mountain highs in the 50s for the foreseeable future. Expect classic spring skiing.

Again, here’s the latest about Arapahoe Basin’s reopening: https://www.arapahoebasin.com/may27-reopening/

And if you’re looking for my end-of-season summary post from April 26th, you can find it here: https://opensnow.com/dailysnow/colorado/post/18857

Happy spring!

JOEL GRATZ

Announcements

Geography Key

Northern Mountains
Steamboat, Granby, Beaver Creek, Vail, Ski Cooper, Copper, Breckenridge, Keystone, Loveland, Arapahoe Basin, Winter Park, Berthoud Pass, Eldora, Rocky Mountain National Park, Cameron Pass

Along the Divide
Loveland, Arapahoe Basin, Winter Park, Berthoud Pass

East of the Divide
Eldora, Echo, Rocky Mountain National Park, Cameron Pass

Central Mountains
Aspen, Sunlight, Monarch, Crested Butte, Irwin, Powderhorn

Southern Mountains
Telluride, Silverton – north side of the southern mountains | Purgatory, Wolf Creek – south side of the southern mountains

About Our Forecaster

Joel Gratz

Founding Meteorologist

Joel Gratz is the Founding Meteorologist of OpenSnow and has lived in Boulder, Colorado since 2003. Before moving to Colorado, he spent his childhood as a (not very fast) ski racer in eastern Pennsylvania.

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