Welcome to the 2024 Western U.S. Daily Summit!

I'm excited to kick off another season of spring and summer weather forecasting to help you plan your outdoor adventures. Although, as you're about to find out, winter is not quite finished with the higher elevations of the Rockies, yet!

Big Picture Weather Pattern

It has been a wild start to May across the Western U.S. with significant snow totals reported from the Sierra to the Wasatch to the Central and Northern Rockies during the first week of the month.

The Northwest and Northern Rockies will see a break in the action this weekend, but a slow-moving cut-off low will meander into the Four Corners region, drawing in moisture from the south with several rounds of rain and snow developing in Colorado and Northern New Mexico through the weekend, with lighter showers for Utah.

Looking at the 7-day precipitation forecast across the West, we can clearly see that Colorado and Northern New Mexico will be the wettest areas, with lighter showers for Utah and Wyoming. This particular model blend shows light precipitation for the Northern Rockies, but we're beginning to see a trend toward wetter conditions for this region next week as well.

Colorado and the Southern Rockies

As of Thursday afternoon, scattered showers have developed across New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming in response to the cut-off low near the Four Corners. 

View → Current Radar

The nearly stationary low will continue to draw in moisture to this region from the south, resulting in more widespread and heavier showers from Friday through Sunday, followed by additional lingering showers into early next week. 

Colorado and Northern New Mexico will see the most significant moisture from this system. Check out projected precipitation totals (rain and liquid-equivalent snow) through Monday morning (May 13). Southern and central mountain ranges in Colorado could see 1 to 2+ inches of precipitation. 

You better believe the higher elevations will pick up more snow from this pattern, too. The snowfall map below (derived from a blend of weather models) assumes a 10:1 snow-liquid ratio, which may be a little high for this time of year as our OpenSnow algorithm is projecting closer to 8:1 ratios.

As a result, this map is probably a little bit overdone in terms of snow totals, but we can still expect decent accumulations at the 5 resorts that are still open (Winter Park, Loveland, A-Basin, Breck, and Copper) over the course of the next 4 days, with the higher accumulations expected further south into the Sawatch and Sangre de Christo Ranges.

Here is a look at our snow forecast summary for Loveland, A-Basin, and Breck. 

More Details → Colorado Ski Area Forecasts

Lower terrain (such as the Front Range foothills) will see more rain showers, or perhaps a rain/snow mix depending on elevation and time of day, and lightning will also be possible as the atmosphere becomes unstable each afternoon. Ski resorts will not be immune to occasional lightning activity, either.

Here is a snapshot of our forecast for Buffalo Creek, in the Front Range foothills southwest of Denver. To get this 10-day and hourly forecast view on any page, make sure you select the "Weather tab".

And don't forget that you can view custom point forecasts for any location and elevation in the world using our Forecast Anywhere feature.

West-Wide Forecast for Thu (May 9) to Fri (May 10)

Multiple waves of rain and snow will move into the Southern Rockies from the south, while the Southern Sierra Nevada Range will even see some light showers on the western fringe of the system.

The Northwest will be in a dry and sunny pattern with temperatures running well above normal for this early in May with highs in 70s and 80s for many locations.

Forecast for Sat (May 11) to Sun (May 12):

The wet (and snowy) pattern will peak across Colorado and New Mexico over the weekend, which could ruin or enhance your weekend plans depending on whether or not you are hoping to hit the slopes or are seeking out dirt. 

Showers will become lighter and more isolated to the west across Utah and also along the eastern side of the Divide in Wyoming and Montana.

Forecast for Mon (May 13) to Tue (May 14)

The stubborn low will finally exit Colorado to the east on Monday, but a second low developing near the CA/Mexico border will continue to draw moisture into the area with lighter showers for Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah.

Meanwhile, recent model runs are jumping on board with the idea of low pressure trough dropping into the Northern Rockies from the northwest, resulting in a chance of rain and high-elevation snow showers. Southwest Montana looks like the most favored area at this time. 

Outlook for Wed (May 15) to Sun (May 19)

The pattern late next week will favor cooler and wetter conditions across the Pacific Northwest and Northern Rockies with another trough projected to arrive from the northwest. The Southwest will trend warmer and drier and this includes Utah and Western Colorado.

The Front Range of the Rockies could go either way with some models hinting at warmer and drier conditions, while other models are projecting more unsettled conditions with showers and thunderstorms possible. 

Thanks so much for reading! My next update will be on Thursday (May 16), followed by 3x/week updates beginning on May 20.

Alan Smith 

Summer Weather: How To Use OpenSnow

As the snow begins to melt and summer conditions quickly take over, remember that you can use OpenSnow as your go-to weather app during the non-winter months.

Get started by going to...

1. Favorites > Weather
2. Location > Weather
3. Maps > Weather

Switch to using your "Summer" favorites list, check the "Weather" tab on both the Favorites screen and any location screen, and avoid poor air quality & incoming storms with our summer-focused map layers in the OpenSnow app.

You can also view the hourly forecast for the next 10 days for any location on Earth in OpenSnow.

1. Go to the "Maps" tab.
2. Tap anywhere or search for a city.
3. Tap "View Forecast".

View → Summer Forecasts