Morning photo: Feels like April

Posted on January 26, 2013 by Bob Berwyn

No good news from Colorado water powwow

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A stream flow gage along Straight Creek, in Dillon, Colorado.

FRISCO —A January thaw has raised stream flows in the Colorado high country close to normal — but only because the warm temperatures are resulting in unseasonable runoff. All in all, Colorado could be facing one of the driest periods on record barring a miraculous turnaround in spring precipitation. And that’s not unheard of. A snowstorm that started March 17, 2003 dumped more than seven feet of snow on parts of the Front Range and Continental Divide and helping to end the early 2000s drought. Will it happen again? Nobody knows, because those types of one-shot weather events are unpredictable. But water managers say that even record-breaking spring snowfalls might not bring the state snowpack back to average. (more…)

Filed under: Snow and weather, Summit County snow and weather, seasons, La Niña, climate and weather, Drought | Tagged: , , , | Leave a Comment »

Colorado snowpack remains above average

Posted on February 2, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

The snowpack in all Colorado River basins declined in January but remain above average across much of the state.

Generally dry weather in January, especially across the southern mountains, leads to decline in most river basins

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Although Summit County was the bullseye for a series snowstorms last month, water watchers said January was a dry month overall in Colorado, resulting in a significant decrease in mountain snowpack in all of the the state’s river basins. Statewide, the snowpack as a percentage of average dropped from 136 percent of average on Jan. 1 to 117 percent of average on Feb. 1.

The biggest declines were in the southern mountains, which only picked up about 25 percent of their average January precipitation, according to state conservationist Allen Green. The Feb. 1 snowpack is better than last year’s and on par with the 2009 snowpack. (more…)

Filed under: climate and weather, Colorado, La Niña, seasons, snow, Summit County Colorado, Summit County news, Summit County snow and weather | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

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