For 12/18/08: And still more moisture is pouring into the area from the south with Grand Junction radar showing some healthy pockets lifting into our area. This is the last gasp of this flow that we were expecting with the pattern set to change to more of a zonal flow by tonight and tomorrow morning. In the interim we are seeing a warm burst of subtropical moisture that will interact with colder temperatures from the north offering areas of very heavy squally snow showers through the day.

Temperatures will warm compared to what we have been seeing with the high for today expected to hit 25 degrees for Crested Butte and slightly higher at 28 degrees for Gunnison. Our overnight lows last night were 15 degrees in CB and 2 degrees in Gunnison. We will see colder tonight in CB dropping to the single digits with Gunnison staying about the same. Daytime highs for Friday will hold to the mid 20’s valley wide but look for significantly colder temperatures to build into the weekend with a fortifying cold front spurring more snow.

Friday is set to be our day of transition with a lull in the flow of moisture but another significant system is building for Saturday that will introduce heavy snow potential, high winds and very cold temperatures. A heaping helping of winter.

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