Colorado Mountain College Steamboat Springs
© John F. Russell/Steamboat Pilot & TodayColorado Mountain College Steamboat Springs employee Sean Derning said that shoveling snow off the stairways of Colorado Mountain College's local campus is starting to get a little old this winter especially after the past couple storms that have dumped several feet of snow in the area.
A snow monitoring site northeast of Steamboat Springs near the Routt and Jackson county border reported the highest amount of snowfall in the state over the weekend with close to 40 inches of snow.

But Steamboat residents didn't need to venture too far from their driveway to confirm that the latest winter storm had made its mark in the Yampa Valley.

"For the mountains in northern Colorado, we had generally 18 to 30 inches of snow with the highest amount being close to 40 inches estimated at the Tower Snotel site," said meteorologist Megan Stackhouse with the National Weather Service in Grand Junction. "We had that atmospheric river and just that unsettled northwesterly flow, and that does really well for you guys up in Steamboat and the northern mountains — so yes, this is a pretty much a slam dunk for you guys."


The highest snow totals were found at the Park Mountain Range site, while residents in town generally saw 10 to 12 inches of snow over the weekend. Areas about two miles east of Steamboat saw up to 15 inches.

"Steamboat is in the Yampa and White River basins, and they are currently at 123% of normal," Stackhouse said. "The Climate Prediction Center is showing not too much of this climate signal for you guys, but it's pretty much just near the above-normal favored for precipitation for Steamboat again.

"You guys have been in the storm track this winter, and if that continues, the Steamboat area and northern Colorado is definitely going to keep getting some good storms, or at least that's what it looks like," she added.

Over the weekend, Steamboat Resort cashed in on the latest storm, recording 14.5 inches of snow and surpassing 100 inches at the summit base.


Local meteorologist Mike Weissbluth said Steamboat's wintery run is expected to continue.

"Unbelievably, it was right on," Weissbluth said of last week's forecast. "The storm performed according to expectations."

Weissbluth said there will be some clearing Monday into Tuesday, and that a piece of the storm that was left behind in Nevada will make its way through the area Wednesday evening with the possibility of bringing small amounts of snow midweek. Another storm is expected to arrive in Colorado Saturday, but Weissbluth anticipates the bulk of that storm to track to the south.

"That will probably hit the southern part of the state more," Weissbluth said. "But then we have another cold front out of the Northwest following very closely behind it that will follow maybe on Monday."

Source: Steamboat Pilot & Today