It is that time of year when you can ski, bike, chase a bit of powder, and repeat. Last weekend Eldora near Boulder grabbed 10 inches of powder for a grand finale weekend of sun and pond skimming on Sunday. This weekend sees a return to unsettled conditions in many areas of the west as an early spring atmospheric river brings moisture to the west.
A broad trough will move into the west spreading high-elevation snow (Snow levels generally 7500-8500) favoring the Rockies. The Sierra will get teased as early as Friday morning with some light snowfall above 6500 feet. Slightly higher totals might land near Mammoth but overall it's mainly a 2-4 inch event. The Rockies will see higher totals.
The Rockies stand decent odds of 5-11 inches of snowfall from Friday to Sunday. Favored locations are the northern Teton Ranges, Southern Montana, and many areas in Colorado by Saturday/Sunday.
Peak snowfall for the Wasatch Range will be on Friday with most models showing 3-7 inches of higher elevation snow (Higher totals might fall east of the Wasatch over the Uintas). Additional light snow is likely Friday night with storm totals in the 6-11 inch range. The models are still not in full agreement.
Bottom Line: Snow will be falling at many ski area locations this week above 8,000-9,000 feet (Slightly cooler in Utah than Colorado). Amounts will be variable elevation- dependant. Some resorts in the west will exceed 4-8 inches primarily by Saturday in Utah and perhaps higher totals in Colorado by Sunday. We need to watch Canada and the Cascades of Washington and Oregon, especially early next week with the colder temps (Snow levels near 3,000).
Follow @powderchasers on Instagram and Facebook for real-time updates.
Check your resorts before venturing out to make sure they are still open!
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