A snowstorm arriving on New Year’s Day in Colorado’s mountains could dump up to 2 feet of snow on the state’s highest peaks, according to the National Weather Service.
By 5 a.m. Sunday, weather service forecasters expect snow accumulations of roughly:
- 2 inches on U.S. 6’s Loveland Pass and Colorado 9’s Hoosier Pass near Breckenridge, with up to 3 inches possible;
- 3 inches on U.S. 40’s Berthoud Pass near Winter Park and Colorado 125’s Willow Creek Pass near Granby, with up to 4 inches possible;
- 5 inches on U.S. 34’s Milner Pass in Rocky Mountain National Park and Interstate 70’s Vail Pass, with up to 6 inches possible;
- 6 inches on Colorado 14’s Cameron Pass near Fort Collins, with up to 8 inches possible;
- 10 inches on U.S. 40’s Muddy Pass near Kremmling, with up to a foot possible;
- 14 inches on U.S. 40’s Rabbit Ears Pass near Steamboat Springs, with up to 17 inches possible;
- And 19 inches on Mount Zirkel, the highest peak of the Park Range in the Rocky Mountains, with up to 2 feet possible.
A winter weather advisory will be in effect for the Park Range Mountains from 11 a.m. Thursday to 5 p.m. Friday, according to the weather service. Four inches to a foot of snow is expected on most of the range’s peaks.
Another advisory will take effect for the northern Front Range mountains late Thursday night and continue through 5 p.m. Friday, weather service forecasters said. Those peaks can expect 2 to 7 inches of snow and up to 60 mph winds, which may create white-out conditions.
No snow is forecast for Denver.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
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