12-24 inches expected in Colorado by New Year's Day | Whiteout snow report

Four separate snow events will become two as snowy and wintry weather returns to Colorado on Christmas Day.

Snow showers return to the high mountains this afternoon, and they are expected to fall more’steadily’ for several days into next week.

Between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, skiers and riders will have several snow days, with the weekend in between being the deepest.

Recap:

powder fell in the northern and central mountains on Monday as anticipated, leaving 3-7 inches of fresh powder for skiers and riders to enjoy on Christmas Eve Tuesday.

Tuesday was cool but sunny, with a protracted stretch of snowy weather building and channeling precipitation into the state for the next 7-8 days.

The new powder snow, however, brought out Santa Claus at Arapahoe Basin Ski Area, as the Summit County ski area received 3 inches of snow for skiing and riding enjoyment.

Forecast:

• Snow is expected to intensify across Colorado’s mountains from Christmas Day Wednesday to Sunday, with accumulations ranging between 12 and 24 inches, up 6 to 9 inches from ahead of projections.

Storm activity is expected to move over the state in a west-northwest direction, with the northern and central mountains receiving slightly more attention, while the southern mountains will experience snow.

According to the ECMWF forecast model, snowfall totals over the north and central mountains will range between 8 and 16 inches by Sunday morning.

The NWS Blend of Models model predicts significantly higher snowfall totals, with 30-38 inches of snow on higher elevation terrain in the Park Range mountains east of Steamboat Springs.

Snow accumulations in other northern mountain regions range from 10 to 23 inches, in the central mountains from 8 to 20 inches, and in the southern mountains from 5 to 10 inches, with the western San Juan mountains receiving the most.

The GFS and German ICON models show similar snowfall totals to the European model, indicating that even with the NWS Blend model as an outlier, snow accumulations will be greater than previously predicted.

• Friday, Saturday, and Sunday should be light to moderate powder skiing and riding days, with Saturday and Sunday being the deepest, particularly in the northern and central mountain ranges.

• Snow will fall again on Sunday night and Monday morning, delivering 4-6 inches to the north and central mountains and 1-3 inches to the southern mountains by Wednesday New Year’s Day.

Ski slopes and resorts north of Interstate 70 should experience the most snow, particularly in Routt, Eagle, Summit, Grand, and Lake counties, while Pitkin and Gunnison counties will almost certainly receive significant snowfall by New Year’s Day.

Expect higher snowfall totals in the northern San Juan and La Garita mountains as a result of these snow episodes.

Long Range:

After January 1, a few days will pass before snow chances return to Colorado on Saturday, January 4. More information on this storm, such as snowfall, impacts, and duration, will be released as the date approaches.

Colorado resorts reported the following 24-hour snow totals today:

Arapahoe Basin – 0″.

Aspen Highlands – 0″

Aspen Mountain — 0″

Beaver Creek – 0″.

Breckenridge — 0″

Buttermilk — 0″

Cooper – 0″

Copper Mountain — 0″

Crested Butte — 0″

Echo Mountain – 0″, including tubing.

Eldora Mountain — 0″