Powder Predictor

Potential blizzard conditions expected with tonight's storm

By Reid Griebling
Real AspenNovember 23, 2010
Blizzard warnings paint the Western Slope map as a brief lull will lead to an unforgettable evening. Vail, Aspen, Snowmass and the rest of western Colorado are battening down the hatches as another strong system moves into our area.

Winds will increase by this afternoon, as low pressure brings frigid temps and blowing snow. Not a lot of moisture with this system, but enough to warrant a blizzard warning by the National Weather Service, with sustained winds in the 30 mph range and expected visibility lowered to a quarter mile.

Rush hour traffic in Vail and Aspen will be affected as these winds will most certainly limit visibility, move snow, and freeze the already hated mag-chloride on the roads. On the bright side of things, we should see anywhere from 6-12 inches fall, with more accumulating snow on west- and southwest-facing slopes.

Temps for the day today will remain cold, with on-mountain highs in the teens and overnight lows below zero. On-mountain windchills will be around zero for most of today, as winds will reach into the 40-50 mph range overnight. Expect gusts into the 70's.

Wednesday will be our coldest day of the season so far, as Arctic air will be pulled in from this system and remain through Thanksgiving Day. Expect on-mountain temps Wednesday in the single digits, with windchill values in the -10 to -20 range.

Thanksgiving Day will be much the same, as high pressure builds in and keeps temps in the single digits with below zero windchills. Overall, it should be a very interesting 36 hours as travel over mountain passes will be challenging and winds will keep many older dogs awake tonight.

Looks like Old Man Winter has taken up residence in Colorado for the time being, and despite bringing the Arctic cold, he is very welcomed by all of us snow lovers.

Happy Thanksgiving, and enjoy!


comments: 0 Comments on "Potential blizzard conditions expected with tonight's storm"

Be the first to comment below.

COMMENT
Comment Form Info  Comment Information
Real Aspen encourages you to post comments on our articles and blogs. Logged in email is required for monitoring purposes. Your email will not be published and will not be distributed to any third-party. Abusive, obscene, profane, threatening, libelous or defamatory comments are prohibited. By posting a comment, you agree to this policy and our terms of use. To report an abusive posting, please contact us.

To make a comment, please log in or create an account. This helps us prevent spam and other malicious attacks.

Please log in to comment

 

Create a user account to comment

Snow Report

  24hr snow mid dpth snow cond.
A-Basin n/a n/a
Aspen n/a n/a closed
BC n/a n/a closed
Breckenridge n/a n/a closed
Buttermilk n/a n/a closed
Copper n/a n/a closed
Crest. Butte n/a n/a closed
Eldora n/a n/a closed
Heavenly n/a n/a closed
Highlands n/a n/a
Howelsen n/a n/a closed
Keystone n/a n/a closed
Kirkwood n/a n/a closed
Loveland n/a n/a
Monarch n/a n/a closed
Northstar n/a n/a closed
Powderhorn n/a n/a closed
Purgatory n/a n/a closed
Silverton n/a n/a closed
Ski Cooper n/a n/a closed
Ski Granby n/a n/a closed
Snowmass n/a n/a closed
Steamboat n/a n/a closed
Sunlight n/a n/a closed
Telluride n/a n/a closed
Vail n/a n/a closed
WinterPark n/a n/a closed
Wolf Creek n/a n/a closed
More Weather Reports
VIDEO GALLERY
Vail powder day snow snake
Airing it out at Crested Butte
Feb. 17, 2011 Surprise 14 inches of Fresh Powder