For 8/5/09: High pressure is continuing to hold in the southwest but western moisture is starting to lift over this ridge into the area. It’s still not enough to fuel anything more then the isolated thundershowers we have been seeing but it’s an indicator of bigger change on the way. By Thursday evening we will see a cold front from the north enter the pattern offering colder conditions with high winds stirring up the variables in the west.

Overnight lows dropped again under the clear skies with Crested Butte reporting 38 degrees while Gunnison has started to get colder reaching 41 degrees this morning. Daytime highs will top out in the mid 70’s for the north end of the valley while Gunnison flirts with the 80’s before the clouds build. This cold front building into the area will keep overnight lows cold into the weekend.

The changes we are seeing in the flow of the western weather pattern will mean a bunch of new variables to the daily weather but there is nothing organized and the results will be from a series of glancing blows. The ultimate outcome will be high gusting winds and more of the same scattered thundershowers but be prepared for more changes as you head out.

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