Colorado peak questions, condition requests and other info.
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peter303 wrote: ↑Tue Jun 06, 2023 6:00 am
Most of the Snotel melt curves are exactly their 30 year medians, save for the west San Juans which are melting more slowly. We are probably biased by recent draw years.
San Juans are actually melting pretty quickly. Dolores, Gunnison, and Rio Grande basins all show faster than normal melt rates, likely due to dust. They're just melting from a much higher peak SWE than normal, so the snow is persisting longer and the snow-all-gone date will likely be 10-20 days later than normal.
san_miguel-dolores-animas-san_juan-assochucco_8-wteq-por.png (188.99 KiB) Viewed 1287 times
gunnison-assochucco_8-wteq-por.png (183.7 KiB) Viewed 1287 times
cougar wrote: ↑Mon Jun 05, 2023 6:17 pm
Big question is if there will be any dry periods before the monsoon, where routes are mostly snow free, and intensity and length of thus summers monsoon.
Monsoon season already started last month.
How many weekends since May were rainy snowy overcast with socked in summits?
The monsoon is a very specific set up where moisture gets pulled from the Gulf of California/Pacific due to a change in wind direction. Just because there has been a lot of rain in May (historically Denver's rainiest month) doesn't mean the monsoon has started. We are in a wet, non-monsoonal pattern now and looking like it is going to stick around for a least another week.
cougar wrote: ↑Mon Jun 05, 2023 6:17 pm
Big question is if there will be any dry periods before the monsoon, where routes are mostly snow free, and intensity and length of thus summers monsoon.
Monsoon season already started last month.
How many weekends since May were rainy snowy overcast with socked in summits?
The monsoon is a very specific set up where moisture gets pulled from the Gulf of California/Pacific due to a change in wind direction. Just because there has been a lot of rain in May (historically Denver's rainiest month) doesn't mean the monsoon has started. We are in a wet, non-monsoonal pattern now and looking like it is going to stick around for a least another week.
Dave B wrote: ↑Tue Jun 06, 2023 6:49 am
San Juans are actually melting pretty quickly. Dolores, Gunnison, and Rio Grande basins all show faster than normal melt rates, likely due to dust.
Yes, the snow in the San Juans is melting quickly. Much of it is due to dust, but it's also been a super-dry spring in much of Colorado, including the San Juans.
I'm old, slow and fat. Unfortunately, those are my good qualities.
Dave B wrote: ↑Tue Jun 06, 2023 6:49 am
San Juans are actually melting pretty quickly. Dolores, Gunnison, and Rio Grande basins all show faster than normal melt rates, likely due to dust.
...but it's also been a super-dry spring in much of Colorado, including the San Juans.
Actually Chris Tomer blog shows average to above average precipation in all but the Northwest quarter of the state for the month of May.
Dave B wrote: ↑Tue Jun 06, 2023 6:49 am
San Juans are actually melting pretty quickly. Dolores, Gunnison, and Rio Grande basins all show faster than normal melt rates, likely due to dust.
Yes, the snow in the San Juans is melting quickly. Much of it is due to dust, but it's also been a super-dry spring in much of Colorado, including the San Juans.
Super-dry west of the Front Range, perhaps. But 1/2 the state has had a super-WET May:
Late season and early season numbers can get crazy dramatic! The median for June 7 is only 0.4" according to the graph below. It actually shows a median melt date of June 11, so I guess it will be infinite in a few days
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Scott P wrote: ↑Wed Jun 07, 2023 11:22 am
Yes, the snow in the San Juans is melting quickly. Much of it is due to dust, but it's also been a super-dry spring in much of Colorado, including the San Juans.
randalmartin wrote: ↑Wed Jun 07, 2023 11:41 am
Actually Chris Tomer blog shows average to above average precipation in all but the Northwest quarter of the state for the month of May.
Here are precip values since April 1 (I wish I could select since March 22). The San Juans have been really dry when compared to average:
GrowPNormHPRCC-CO.png (261.16 KiB) Viewed 673 times
Here's May. Some parts of the San Juans were wetter than normal and many parts were drier than normal:
Last1mPNormHPRCC-CO.png (263.23 KiB) Viewed 684 times
May was better than April, but April was really dry in the San Juans and April is usually a big snow month. Winter was wet, but the snow shut off in March.
Although precip picked up a bit in May, overall it has been a very dry spring in the San Juans and much of Colorado. (Of course much of Colorado has also had a wet spring).
I'm old, slow and fat. Unfortunately, those are my good qualities.
