DENVER — Denver snowfall totals for the year are closer to normal, but still behind the seasonal average thanks to several snow storms that rolled through the metro in February.
“In the Denver area, we had a slow start in September with no snow and picked it up pretty good in October and then really tailed off in November, December and January,” said Denver7 Chief Meteorologist Mike Nelson. “But so far in February, typically one of our least-snowy months, has been the snowiest for the year.”
So far in February, Denver’s official snow readings at Denver International Airport recorded 11.7 inches of snow, which is above the normal 7.8 inches the metro sees on average for the second month of the year.
“If you add up the almost foot of snow we’ve had so far in the month of February and season-to-date is at about 27 inches and the average is about 31 inches at this point in the season.”
If the 2022-2023 winter season in Denver seemed to bring more snow by now, you are correct.
“Last year at this point, we were at 37 inches, so we’re a little behind where we were last year but that’s mostly because of what happened in November through January,” said Nelson.
There’s ample opportunity to catch up to last year’s cumulative snow totals. “Typically March and April are big snow months, so we’ll see what happens,” added Nelson.
Here’s a look at other snowfall totals so far this year across Colorado:
- Boulder: 39.6”
- Brighton: 20.2”
- Castle Rock: 39.6”
- Denver: 27.1"
- Evergreen: 62”
- Georgetown: 44.6”
- Greeley: 22.7”
- Fort Collins: 23.9”
- Lakewood: 21.9”
- Loveland: 26.3”
- Northglenn: 23.7”
- Walden: 48.1”
Note: The above reports are approximate as some daily snowfall data was not available.
Despite the lower snow totals across many parts of Colorado, Nelson said in terms of the state’s drought monitor, the eastern plains are in good shape while southwestern Colorado continues under moderate drought conditions.
The National Weather Service (NWS) in Pueblo said after a dry start to the 2024 Water Year, which runs from October 2023 through September 2024, increased precipitation was reported over the last couple of months along the south central and southeastern portion of the state
“This is especially true across portions of southeast Colorado, with Pueblo setting a new daily record precipitation for the month of February with 1.06 inches recorded on February 3rd, 2024,” said the NWS in a February 12 report.
The normal precipitation for all of February in Pueblo is .32 inches, according to the NWS.
Colorado’s snowpack was below median at 87 percent at the end of January, yet recent storms pushed the statewide snowpack to 98 percent of median, the NWS said.
Despite the January and February snowstorms, the NWS predicted drought conditions to continue across south central Colorado through April.
Colorado’s long-range weather outlook shows the potential for good news for more snow and rain.
Adding to what are typically snowier months in Colorado, the state’s 30-day precipitation outlook shows the potential for wetter than average weather across the entire state in March and April.
“Across the west, big California storms coming in, including in Colorado and the 90-day forecast has us close to average,” said Nelson “Hopefully, we’ll continue to get some good soggy systems, we could use them, especially as we get into the snowiest time of the year typically in Colorado.”
24-HOUR COLORADO SKI AREA SNOW REPORTS
- A-Basin: 2"
- Copper Mountain: 1"
- Eldora: 1"
- Keystone: 0"
- Loveland: 4"
- Purgatory: 0"
- Steamboat: 10"
- Winter Park: 3"
- Wolf Creek Ski Area: 0"
To view the Denver snowfall statistics infographics in fullscreen mode click this link.
COLORADO SNOWPACK MAP
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