Mountain West Discussion

[Jesse]

00z runs say that a late season Arctic intrusion could greet us upon arrival to Montana.

[Black Hole]

00z runs say that a late season Arctic intrusion could greet us upon arrival to Montana.

12z ECMWF hinting at some kind of snow or chilly weather for you. 

[Jesse]

12z ECMWF hinting at some kind of snow or chilly weather for you.

Seeing snow and some cold temps when we're out there would be pretty cool. Aside from this upcoming trip, the only other times I've visited Whitefish has been in either late Spring or late-summer/early fall. So climo wise this would definitely be our best chance.

[Snowman5678]

At least things finally changed yesterday.

 

We had a cold front with thunderstorms yesterday (frequent lightning and small hail or graupel) followed by 1-2" of snow for areas off the valley floor. High was 60, a few hours later it was 32. Also, winds were pretty strong with the front.

 

Sunny today, with no big storms expected this week again. Models hinting at more action 7-10 days from now. 

Yes they did! My morning class was cancelled yesterday so I went skiing, 6" of fresh powder! 

[Black Hole]

Really warm day today, 70F at my place with sunshine. Tomorrow looks to top out in the low 70s, and Saturday in the mid 60s.

 

Winter comes back early next week with a few inches of snow likely between Monday and Wednesday. Pretty chilly trough. 

[Black Hole]

Warmest day at my house was 70F two days ago, low 60s the last two days.

 

Pretty good cold front for Monday, and in fact looks similar to the one last week but colder. Probably some heavy rain/thunder Mon morning before snow levels crash with 1-3" of snow. 

Another wave Tuesday morning dropping another 1-3". 

[Front Ranger]

Looking like a nice little 2-4" storm Thu night/Friday morning.

 

Still believe we'll see a big snowfall at some point in the next few weeks.

[Black Hole]

Looking like a nice little 2-4" storm Thu night/Friday morning.

 

Still believe we'll see a big snowfall at some point in the next few weeks.

The last storm busted with maybe 1.5" total, but oh well it was something.

 

Pleasant weather this week with low 50s and partly sunny the last few days. 

[Front Ranger]

Under a WWA for 3-6" now, with up to 8" possible with bands. Already about 1" here in Boulder.

[TT-SEA]

Under a WWA for 3-6" now, with up to 8" possible with bands. Already about 1" here in Boulder.

Hope Chris is still there!

[Front Ranger]

Hope Chris is still there!

 

He said he was staying all week.

[Front Ranger]

Ended up with 5". Lots of moderate snowfalls this cold season.

 

The pattern coming next week looks fairly dynamic and tasty. Probably another decent storm in there somewhere.

[Black Hole]

Next system Tues-Wed looks like rain with the front, but a trailing shortwave may bring 1-2" on Wed. Perhaps another system a few days later too. 

[Jesse]

Clear and cold in Whitefish, Montana. Hit 14 this morning.

[Front Ranger]

Clear and cold in Whitefish, Montana. Hit 14 this morning.

 

Nice. Low of 18 here...clouds kept it from getting colder.

[GHweatherChris]

Hope Chris is still there!

Yep, I was there until Friday evening.  Got up up early Friday morning before heading to the office to enjoy the snow.  It was a great way to end the week.

[Jesse]

Low of 22 in Whitefish this morning.

 

Up to 35 now with increasing clouds.

[Jesse]

51 and mostly cloudy in Whitefish after a low of 34.

 

A secondary cold front could bring rain changing over to snow here tonight into tomorrow morning.

[Front Ranger]

Got up to 73 today after several well below normal days. Snow is, needless to say, all gone.

 

However, in typical spring time in the Rockies fashion, another chilly storm moves in Tue night/Wed with some more snow likely.

[Black Hole]

We had about 2" today after a high of 68F yesterday. 

Looks like blizzard warnings are up in Colorado. 

[Front Ranger]

We had about 2" today after a high of 68F yesterday.

 

Looks like blizzard warnings are up in Colorado.

Yup, to the east of here. Expecting 4-8" in the metro area, if downsloping isnt too strong. I could see this one being a bust, unless the storm slows down or drops a bit further south.

[Front Ranger]

Well, the storm slowed down. Legit blizzard conditions around the area, lost power at my house, and now lost it at the office. 8" when I left this morning, could end up with well over a foot from this thing.

 

Big El Ninos almost always deliver a big spring storm here.

[Front Ranger]

Highway 36, the main highway between Boulder and Denver, is now shut down. So is the airport. Might have to crash at a co-worker's place tonight.

[bainbridgekid]

Well, the storm slowed down. Legit blizzard conditions around the area, lost power at my house, and now lost it at the office. 8" when I left this morning, could end up with well over a foot from this thing.

 

Big El Ninos almost always deliver a big spring storm here.

73 degrees there yesterday.

 

http://w1.weather.gov/data/obhistory/KDEN.html

 

Simply amazing.

[Black Hole]

Yeah pretty amazing with areas approaching 2 feet of snow!

[bainbridgekid]

Denver airport is closed for the first time in a decade.

[TT-SEA]

Denver airport is closed for the first time in a decade.

 

 

I was looking at the hourly stats... 72 degrees with a dewpoint of 8 at 4 p.m. yesterday.      Good wet bulb cooling?  

 

Actually amazing though because the wind switched to north and by 4 a.m. it was snowing.    70+ degree day and then snowing hard before daylight the next day.     And now its 24 degrees.  

[luminen]

Denver really has the best climate in the US. 

[Front Ranger]

I hope you have been taking pictures.

 

I have. Will post tonight. Ended up with about 2' at my house. Second biggest storm I've witnessed in my 9 winters here.

[Black Hole]

In Utah the storms are not quite as dramatic as Denver, but we get some good ones. It is really fun to see such rapid changes. Last year we had one that went from 76F, dust storm, and winds gusting to 65 mph to 6 hours later 35 and snow. We had 10" by the next morning with temps in the upper 20s. 

This storm was similar temperature wise for you guys, but twice as much snow! 

[Front Ranger]

In Utah the storms are not quite as dramatic as Denver, but we get some good ones. It is really fun to see such rapid changes. Last year we had one that went from 76F, dust storm, and winds gusting to 65 mph to 6 hours later 35 and snow. We had 10" by the next morning with temps in the upper 20s. 

 

This storm was similar temperature wise for you guys, but twice as much snow! 

 

Yeah, this storm was nothing I haven't seen before in terms of temperature change, but it was by far the heaviest prolonged snowfall. The biggest storm total I've seen remains the Dec 2006 storm with 28", but that was over 2 days. This storm dumped 24" in about 12 hours.

[Phil]

Denver really has the best climate in the US.

If I wanted to move somewhere for climate/weather reasons, Denver would be one of my top choices, and spring blizzards like this always make me consider the possibility of doing so, should a work opportunity present itself. The lack of oppressive summer humidity is a huge plus in my book, as is the general scenery.

 

For me, problem with Denver is (aside from the general lack of precipitation) heavier snowstorms dropping 20"+ are relatively rare compared to my region. The true monsters are my favorite weather phenomenon, so that's something I'd have a hard time letting go of.

[Front Ranger]

First pic was around 8 am, when I had 7-8". Rest of the pics are towards the end of the storm and this morning. For reference, my dog is 70 lbs and 28" tall.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Black Hole]

Starting to look like somebody in my area is going to get hit pretty good Mon-Wed. 

 

Currently models have wraparound Monday evening with heavy snow, and another round from the ULL settling over the area Tue-Wed. I suspect somebody will get 6-10" out of this in the Utah valleys and I hope its me.  

[Front Ranger]

If I wanted to move somewhere for climate/weather reasons, Denver would be one of my top choices, and spring blizzards like this always make me consider the possibility of doing so, should a work opportunity present itself. The lack of oppressive summer humidity is a huge plus in my book, as is the general scenery.

 

For me, problem with Denver is (aside from the general lack of precipitation) heavier snowstorms dropping 20"+ are relatively rare compared to my region. The true monsters are my favorite weather phenomenon, so that's something I'd have a hard time letting go of.

 

How many 20"+ snowstorms has DC had since 2005? Not talking up in the hills, but the actual city.

[TT-SEA]

Amazing pictures Jared!

[Jesse]

How many 20"+ snowstorms has DC had since 2005? Not talking up in the hills, but the actual city.

Three a year on average.

[Front Ranger]

Three a year on average.

 

That would mean at least 60"/year on average. Right up there with Denver and SLC!

[BLI snowman]

How many 20"+ snowstorms has DC had since 2005? Not talking up in the hills, but the actual city.

 

Yeah, Denver gets about as many huge snowstorms as the I-95 cities do and gets quite a bit more snow overall. If you want to factor the hilly, suburban areas on the East Coast like western Maryland into a comparison then it's only fair to look at the snowier foothill locales like Golden and Boulder when talking about the I-25 region. Colorado generally crushes Phil's area. 

[Front Ranger]

Yeah, Denver gets about as many huge snowstorms as the I-95 cities do and gets quite a bit more snow overall. If you want to factor the hilly, suburban areas on the East Coast like western Maryland into a comparison then it's only fair to look at the snowier foothill locales like Golden and Boulder when talking about the I-25 region. Colorado generally crushes Phil's area. 

 

Could be. I've seen five 20"+ snowstorms and nine 15"+ since 2006. Historically, there's no doubt we crush I-95 cities overall. They have seen some historic storms in the past 15 years, but for major metro areas, Denver holds its own for big snowstorms.