Winter Storm — West Jackson & West Grand Counties Above 9000 Feet, Colorado
2024-01-11 to 2024-01-15 · West Jackson & West Grand Counties Above 9000 Feet, Colorado
Event narrative
Storm totals included: 51 inches, 4 miles southeast of Mount Zirkel; 49 inches near Rabbit Ears Pass; and 39 inches, 11 miles south of Rabbit Ears Pass.
Wider weather episode
A long duration mountain snowfall event occurred over the course of the Martin Luther King weekend, with several feet of snow. Most SNOTEL sites picked up an estimated 2 to 4 feet of snow. The wind remain strong and gusty through the period, with the strongest gusts on the 13th and 15th, most intense above timberline. A peak gust to 119 mph occurred at Peak 8 at Breckenridge on the 13th. Numerous road closures were implemented over the course of the weekend, primarily on the 15th with the combination of snow and very strong winds. A minor avalanche on Berthoud Pass closed US 40 during the afternoon of the 14th, and the closure continued into the morning of the 16th. Ten vehicles were reportedly caught in the first slide; no injuries were reported. Road closures included: US 40 from Steamboat Springs to Kremmling, in addition to the Berthoud Pass closure; CO-125 from Granby to the Wyoming Border, Interstate 70 from Vail to Copper Mountain; Silverthorne to the Eisenhower-Johnson Tunnel, and some stretches of I-70 east of the tunnel. There were substantial impacts to holiday ski traffic. At one point, every state and US highway in Jackson County was closed. A few spots in the mountains were also impacted by bitter cold including a low temperatures of -34F in Hebron, and -33F in Grand Lake.
Even in the mountain valleys, snow and blowing snow where gusts in the 50-70 mph range were more common. The combination of strong winds and freshly fallen snow culminated in localized ground blizzards along State Highway 93 from Golden north to State Highway 128 in Jefferson County. On the 15th, near whiteout conditions from localized ground blizzards made for a difficult commute from Golden to Boulder through much of the day. US 285 over Kenosha Pass also experienced significant blowing snow and poor visibility.
Some of the more impressive storm totals included: 51 inches near Green Mountain Reservoir and 4 miles southeast of Mt Zirkel; 49 inches at Rabbit Ears Pass, 45 inches near Winter Park, 42 inches at Mt Audubon and Arapahoe Peak; 40.5 inches, 9 miles southeast of Spicer, and 39 inches, 11 miles south of Rabbit Ears Pass. Other peak wind gusts included: 114 mph near Copper Mountain, 112 mph near Berthoud Pass, 82 mph at Dakota, 81 mph at Red Cliff Pass 81 and 80 mph, 8 miles southwest of Tabernash.
Across the plains, a few rounds of light snow were accompanied by below zero temperatures and dangerous wind chills. Some MLK Day events were either canceled or shortened. Total snowfall accumulations across the urban corridor and northeast were light, with storm totals generally less than 6 inches, but the icy conditions did cause some travel impacts. The coldest temperatures during this evening occurred on the 15th and the morning of the 16th. Denver plummeted to -19F briefly on the evening of the 15th, nearly tying the record low for the day. The temperatures dropped to -19F on the morning of the 16th which tied the record low for the date. Some of the plains locations dropped down to -30F.
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1147603. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.