For 3/17/09: With no real changes in the western weather pattern this high pressure ridge will hold and keep us in more of these incredible sunny skies and mild temperatures. A weak system trying to dip into the area from the north on Wednesday will introduce increased cloud cover but clear blue conditions will be the dominant weather feature through the better part of the forecast.

Overnight lows have started to warm a bit as this true high pressure sets up for the long haul with Crested Butte reporting 12 degrees while Gunnison dropped lower to 7 degrees this morning. Daytime highs will once again rebound quickly under these blue skies to a degree or two warmer than we have been seeing to top out in the low 40’s valley wide. Look for a slight increase in the cloud cover tonight to insulate against the colder overnight lows but this will only mean the low teens.

The only weather currently moving through the west is holding to our north with this high pressure ridge holding between us and any variables to these blue skies. Tomorrow we will see enough of a shift in the pattern to draw some of that cloud cover down to the other side of the divide but nothing of any consequence will make it into the area. It looks like we have another day calling for the highest SPF you have so don’t forget the sunscreen and reapply often.

Look for a complete Crested Butte and Gunnison weather report, 24 hour trends and real time weather information now available at WWW.CBTV.TV.