Colorado Weather: Heavy Snow Follows 90-Degree Heat

DENVER, CO — Coloradoans will swap out muscle shirts and shorts for winter jackets and boots Friday and Saturday as much of the state will be under a winter storm watch, bracing for snow just hours after temperatures reach 90 degrees.

Temperatures were expected to reach 90 degrees Thursday in Denver and the upper 80s in Boulder. But don't say that to Mother Nature — a late spring storm would bring heavy snow to the Front Range mountains and foothills Friday and Saturday.

The National Weather Service said heavy, wet snow will fall Friday and Saturday, with about 3-10 inches expected in the Denver metro area, 8-12 inches in the Palmer Divide and over 2 feet near the Continental Divide.

"Considering leaf out has occurred, downed trees-branches and power outages will be a significant threat," the weather service tweeted.

"Confidence is increasing in moderate to heavy snowfall in the Front Range mountains and foothills, mostly above 7000 feet and primarily along the eastern slopes, late Thursday through Saturday morning," the National Weather Service said. "There is still a lot of uncertainty in snowfall totals but significant impacts seem likely, especially to mountain travel."

Accuweather predicted Denver will see some Friday morning rain followed by a mix of snow and rain in the afternoon, though little or no accumulation was expected. Up to 3 inches of wet snow was possible Friday night that could bring down trees and power lines.

On Saturday, Accuweather predicted morning snow followed by some rain, with up to 3 inches of accumulation possible and slick morning roads expected. More rain is expected Saturday afternoon, and temperatures were expected to dip to 34 degrees Saturday night.

The following areas are under a winter storm watch:

• Jackson County below 9,000 feet
• Grand and Summit counties below 9,000 feet
• Central and Southeast Park County
• Larimer County below 6,000 feet
• Northwest Weld County
• Boulder and Jefferson counties below 6,000 feet
• West Broomfield County
• North Douglas County below 6,000 feet
• Denver/West Adams and Arapahoe counties
• East Broomfield County
• Elbert/Central and East Douglas Counties above 6,000 feet