IDAHO SPRINGS, Colo. — As rain soaked the Front Range, snow hit the mountains, leading some skiers and snowboarders to take full advantage of the spring storm.
"I grew up in the mountains, so I'm used to May snow, and this is normal for me," said Jack Hill, who was traveling from Niwot Tuesday. "I mean, it's wet, but, you know, it's not much traffic, so it wasn't bad at all."
Like others, Hill chose to drive on Interstate 70 toward one of the ski resorts still open for the season to ski on fresh snow.
"You always try to get as much skiing into these seasons," he said.
Erick Heng joined in that sentiment, choosing Loveland Ski Area for the day instead.
"Saw today's snow, saw the forecast, that solidified the decision," he said. "I'm sure we'll get more. But if this is the last one, take it. I'll be skiing the rest of May, as much as I can here. Just never know what you're gonna get."
Meanwhile, staff at the Colorado Department of Transportation monitored the I-70 corridor, making sure plow crews went where they were most needed.
"We surge resources when there's a storm like this, specifically in the spring where we're going to have higher effects up in the mountains," said Austyn Dineen, the I-70 Corridor Spokesperson for CDOT. "We'll take some of our resources from the front range and move them up to the mountains."
Today's Forecast
Here's when heavy rain moves out of Denver as snow piles up in the high country
Dineen told Denver7 that springtime snowstorms can be a mixed bag for the state, so the department tries to plan as well as it can.
"It's really important for people to know that Colorado spring storms are historically known for being unpredictable, and they're really a mixed bag of conditions. The conditions can start with rain and then shift into snow and then shift back, and the sun can come out," she said. "Spring is really a challenging time to forecast the weather. It is known for being unpredictable."
She said CDOT teams have been forecasting the spring storm for days, focusing on mountain accumulations and passes and the impacts that could be felt there.
"Those are passes like Berthoud, Loveland, Cameron Pass, and others," Dineen said. "Sometimes in Colorado, you have to laugh when the season actually ends because Mother Nature is really the one who's in charge."
But the May snowstorm isn't surprising for those like Heng and Hill.
"Oh, well, it's May. We'll get snow no matter what, in May, it seems," Hill said.
If anything, it's welcomed.
"We've had some warm stretches before now. So this is great for this time of the season," Heng added.
The rain should taper off by Wednesday morning with lingering scattered showers and thunderstorms through the afternoon.
By Thursday, temperatures will begin to rebound through the early part of next week with plenty of sunshine expected.
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