For 1/22/09: The wave of pacific moisture we have been watching in the west is finally free of this ridge of high pressure and has started it’s march into the west. The complicating factor to the forecast is that without the ridge to keep it organized it has blown apart into three distinct sections. All of these will affect our weather through the next few days with a shot of warm wet pacific moisture holding into next week.

The inversion that was supposed to be holding stronger has all but disappeared based on the evidence of last night’s lows. Gunnison reported a low of 4 degrees while Crested Butte was only a bit warmer at 8 degrees. We have already started the rebound early with the heavy cloud cover and we should see a daytime high in the low 30’s valley wide. So based on this evidence it is reasonable to consider the inversion gone which will bring all elevations back into check heading into the end of the week.

The forecast is being made even more difficult by the combination of unorganized moisture and warm temperatures. Right now models are predicting the most moisture for the north but this pattern and the potential subtropical tap have proven very generous for us so we are not out of it yet. We just need the right dynamics so think snow. Layer up today but temperatures should be pretty mild.

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