Winter Storm — Central Colorado River Basin, Colorado

2025-02-13 to 2025-02-15 · Central Colorado River Basin, Colorado

Event narrative

Generally 4 to 8 inches of snow fell across the area with higher amounts of 11 to 13 inches of snow reported south of Glenwood Springs area. 13.2 inches of snow was reported at Glenwood Springs 5.3 SSE. Wind gusts were in the 20 to 30 mph range at times.

Wider weather episode

A deep closed low pressure system moved into the Great Basin, bringing a surge of strong Atmospheric River moisture on the order of 200 to 300 percent of normal ahead of it. Some colder air moved in after trough passage as the flow shifted from southwest to northwest, changing rain over to snow in lower elevations. Strong dynamics and high moisture content resulted in widespread moderate to heavy snowfall in most mountain areas of eastern Utah and western Colorado where at least 1 to 2 feet of snow fell with locally higher amounts over 3 feet in some mountain areas. In terms of the lower elevations, the southwest Colorado valleys benefitted the most from the southwest flow with up to a foot or so while other lower valleys saw light to moderate snowfall accumulations.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1239632. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.