DENVER — Periods of heavy, widespread rain will continue in Denver and across the I-25 corridor throughout Tuesday evening as Colorado’s higher elevations will see snow accumulations up to 20 inches through Wednesday as a strong spring storm system pushes through the state.
“It’s definitely the coolest day of the week and the soggiest. We’ll see a rain-snow mix possible for the Palmer Divide tonight,” said Denver7 chief meteorologist Lisa Hidalgo. “You may see some slushier conditions especially west of the metro and up into the mountains where over the next couple of days we’ll see heavier snow totals.”
The threat of flooding is low in Denver, according to the National Weather Service (NWS) in Boulder as heavy snow could make for difficult travel conditions in the high country.
“From 10 to 20 inches of snow is expected over the higher east slopes, including I-70 in Clear Creek county and Berthoud and Kenosha Passes,” wrote NWS forecasters.
Winter storm warnings and a winter weather advisory are in effect across Colorado’s mountains and foothills.
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Portions of Jackson, Larimer, Grand, Boulder, Gilpin, Clear Creek, Summit and Park Counties above 9,000 feet are under the winter storm warning until 6 a.m. Wednesday where between 10 and 20 inches of snow could pile up, said the NWS.
“Travel could be very difficult by late this afternoon and evening, including I-70 east of the Eisenhower Tunnel, the Peak to Peak Highway, US40 over Berthoud Pass, and Highway 14 over and east of Cameron Pass. The hazardous conditions will impact the late Tuesday morning and Tuesday evening commutes,” added the NWS.
A winter weather advisory is also in effect for the Northern and Southern Front Range Foothills where snow totals could reach 10 inches above 8,000 feet and less accumulation at lower elevations to 7,000 feet, according to the NWS.
Red Feather Lakes, Georgetown, Idaho Springs, Estes Park, Bailey and Nederland are included in the winter weather advisory which is in effect until 6 a.m. Wednesday.
Across Denver metro communities, between .5” and 1.5” of rain is expected through Wednesday morning with amounts gradually decreasing through Colorado’s northeastern plains.
“In Denver, expect to see some soaking showers through tonight and we’ll gradually see the rain taper off by Wednesday midday with lingering scattered showers and thunderstorms through the afternoon but not nearly as heavy Wednesday afternoon as we’ll see Tuesday,” said Hidalgo.
As for Denver’s temperature forecast, Wednesday's afternoon high will only warm to around 57 degrees.
By Thursday, temperatures will begin to rebound through the early part of next week with plenty of sunshine expected. Thursday’s high temp in Denver will warm to 68 degrees with mostly sunny skies with calm conditions and a high of 75 degrees on Friday along with a few isolated afternoon storms.
This weekend in Denver, temps really begin to soar – reaching the upper 70s on Saturday before hitting 82 degrees on Sunday.
Looking ahead at Colorado’s 10-day forecast, Hidalgo said the state is just on the edge of wetter-than-average conditions and it looks to dry out in Denver for a bit after this storm pushes through as warmer-than-average temperatures area expected to settle into Denver and across Colorado.
How Denver's snow season looks this year
April in Denver was the 12th driest on record. According to NWS stats, the city's official gauge only received 2.2” of snow, which is 4 inches below normal. Denver’ only saw a half inch of rain, which was 1.18” below normal.
Looking at the snow totals this season in Denver, as of April, the season's cumulative total is down 7.2" from normal. At this point, Denver's snow gauge should be at around 54.9" for the season with the 2024-25 total coming in at 47.7.
Denver's monthly snowfall total for the month of May is only 1.7".
Denver7 is tracking how this snow season compares to previous years. Check Colorado snow statistics in the graphic below or in fullscreen mode by clicking this link.
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