As travelers prepare to hit the road to visit friends and family for the Thanksgiving holiday, a major winter storm set to strike the Western Slope may cause problems. Some areas will be measuring snow in terms of feet rather than the usual inches.
A strong Pacific trough of low pressure will begin encroaching on western Colorado today followed by a cold front on Sunday. These factors will combine to bring heavy snow to much of the western third of the state where Winter Storm Warnings have been posted.
The long-lasting storm will bring periods of heavy snow lasting from today through Wednesday. The San Juans will bear the brunt through tomorrow followed by the Sawatch and Elk mountain ranges from Monday through Wednesday. Areas farther north along the Rockies will also feel the effects.
Here in Thornton and the Denver metro area things will be much calmer but also cooler, particularly on Wednesday and Thanksgiving Day. High temperatures for those two days may not even reach the freezing mark. At the current time it does appear we will remain dry so flying into and out of Denver International Airport (DIA) should not be a problem.
