Crestone Weather Center
Crestone, Colorado

 

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Reports from Saturday's Snow Squall
(Posted by Keno at 401 pm, Feb 16)

As I have noted near the bottom of these weather blog notes, we rarely see snow squalls in the winter here, as they are more a springtime thing for our area. But because of our warming winter climates of the last several years/decades, seeing them in winter isn't as unusual anymore, as we saw 2 hit on two straight days last week, although the one on late Friday hit near the end of still a ongoing snow event. For Saturday's squall, it was mainly more like a spring snow squall, and here at the Chalet 1 Crestone/Baca Weather Station (at 8,085 Feet), we saw more than an half inch fall (0.6" to be exact) in just under 15 minutes. That was also the snowfall total for the entire day, along with 0.03 of an inch of melted snow to water in the gauge. Elsewhere in Chalet 1, I have 2 other reports in. At Paul's place on Panorama Way, at the east end of town at 8,560 feet, he and his B&B guests saw 0.8" of snow. Then on Arrowhead Way at 8,150 feet, 0.5" fell "from the beautiful little snow squall", as our spotter put it, beautiful indeed! Then from above the town of Crestone, near East Galena Ave, 1/4 mile east of Crestone, at 8,150 feet, they saw 1.8" fall, including a bit that accumulated after the 3pm report from Friday.

Next up is a trip out to the Grants in the SLV, with our spotter Jan reporting 0.4" snow and 0.05" liquid precip at Brook Trout west of Wagon Wheel, at 7,800 feet. Jan also answered the question I wondered about in yesterday's report, about if it actually had rained or not out in the Grants, after Denver TV radar showed rain and not snow falling. Well, it did indeed during the afternoon, and yes, this was why the Grants saw more water from yesterday's weather event than the foothills saw. Rain anywhere in February is almost unheard of in the Crestone Foothills or in our mountains. It's only officially been recorded once in our weather history, and that was just a trace of rain in the foothills that I reported a few years back (but a trace isn't officially measurable rain, either); and it still has never rained a trace or measurable rain ever in our mountains during the winter months here. But out in the Grants, because of their lower elevation, yes, it has seen measurable rain a few times there in the winter months.... Lets see, I have one last local snow report from Saturday's snow, out in Chalet 2, near Carefree and Jubilant, at an elevation of 8,000 feet. They measured 1.5" just after the squall ended, but the snow lingered on after that over at the south end of our foothills, as it often does in that location, and that's what took place yesterday in Chalet 2, as it continued to snow and accumulated after the squall passed, but what fell after that melted before our spotter could measure it, thanks to the sun coming out directly after the snow ended.

In closing, no snow report from Moffat, as my grandson who makes those reports is out of town for the next week or so. Then the report from east of here at South Colony's Automatic Weather Station (officially called "AWS reporting"); this AWS up above the Crestone/Baca at 10,800 feet is still not reporting correctly, other than it's still only updating the snowpack each day, which doesn't tell us how much falls daily, but it's up a bit more as of Sunday morning at 1am, and shows 37.0" up there. But that reading is still 76% of what the snowpack should be for mid February, yet it did go up 11% in the last 3 days, too, so let's hope that trend continues.

Snow Reports from Friday's Snowfall
(Posted by Keno at 316 am, Feb 15)

One of our spotters noted to me how it snowed most of Friday, yet the total snow that accumulated seemed less than expected, since it came down for such a long time. Yes, I agree, that seemed so to myself, too. Plus once again for this snow season, we aren't seeing a lot of snow fall at all when it does snow, and now while only in mid February, we had yet another wet snow fall instead of the usual dry snow we should be seeing. While here at the Crestone Weather Station (elevation 8,085 feet) we saw a total of 0.27 of an inch of melted down snow, a nice drink for sure, I only measured 1.8" of snow on the snow board. Normally we only might see such a low snow total with that amount of water falling with dry snow, not wet snow.

So anyway, here is a few of the early reports I received for Friday's snow reports, and I'll start off from the town of Crestone, with the first one from the southern town line on Birch St., at 7,888 feet, where 1.0 inch was reported, but perhaps a bit more actually fell, since the snow melted some before the measurement took place. The second report from town comes from E Galena Ave, 1/4 mile east of Crestone, at  8,150 feet, where 1.2 inches was measured. Next we head south to the Baca in Chalet 1. Besides my report from there, 2.3 inches comes in from 8,560 feet at the east end of town, on Panorama Way. Finally, from out in the Grants, near Brook Trout west of Wagon Wheel, at 7,800', they had 0.5" measurable snow through the day, plus also about 1/4" of hail in the afternoon fell there, too. Melted snow/hail came to 0.35 of an inch, even more that what was seen at the Crestone/Baca station! I also saw that one Denver TV weatherman was showing rain in the valley on his radar map, but I don't know if that was true or not. My grandson who reports from there was only at his Moffat home in the morning hours and he reported snow falling there at that time but nothing had stuck on the ground. He was here all afternoon, so obviously, no report from there when the rain was noted by the Denver map I saw. Also, the snow line for this event started where the first turn is on T Road, according to my other grandson as he was driving home here around noonish Friday, if I recall correctly.

Now, one last report from up high, east of here at South Colony, up above the Crestone/Baca at 10,800 feet, the one report that so many of you like to hear about. But the automatic station hasn't reported yet on this latest snowfall, other than for noting the snowpack, which has become much lower than it should be at this time of the year, at just 30 inches, and that's only 67% of normal, with a very unusual melt off happening for this time of the year, as those full week of warm days that we saw last week, was also felt up there, too. So while the snowpack up there was near normal just a few weeks ago, it has taken a turn for the worst - fast! I'm hoping to update this report tomorrow here, but sometimes the station does mess up and delays it's readings, so that may or may not be the case.

That's it for now with these early reports; I'll post more here when more come in to me. I thank our snow spotters for this reports! Update on early Saturday afternoon. First, from one of my long time spotters in Chalet 2 near Arrowhead (8,150 ft, if I recall correctly), who could only report "2 to 3 inches" early this morning, since they weren't home during the day. Then from Baca Ranches, at 7,730 feet elevation, just west of town, 0.16" liquid from 1.0" of snow. Finally the updated report from South Colony, and yes, the station is having issues, other than reporting a snow pack of 34.0" this morning, it's claiming on it's readout that "no snow fell yesterday". We all know heavy snowed fell up there of course, so who even knows if the snow pack reported is correct or not. Automatic weather stations mess up and do this every so often!

PS... I'm sorry for so many of the mistakes I made up above before I finally edited it this Saturday afternoon. It's really embarrassing to me that there were so many mistakes! But it's either me no longer writing up these reports, or everybody understanding that one of my illnesses is getting in the way of things when it comes to my writing skills and this will only get worst as I keep aging. I still love being your weatherman and it's actually good for me health wise to keep doing this work. But my writing skills are no longer what they once were and my spelling is getting worst in time, and my forgetting to use spell check before I publish this is flat out ridiculous, but all of this comes with how I am these days. Perhaps I can get my caretaker to proof read for me, not sure what else I can do, but otherwise not let it bug me. Yet it does, since I'm only human after all. But I'll keep writing up these reports for the rest of this snow season at the least, then after that, I can't promise anything else for the future, other than I'll keep the station going, and my kids promise to keep it going for years to come, as long as they never move away, that is. Again, sorry for that mess you all had to read this morning.

Two Record High Temps broken in the Crestone/Baca on Monday
(Posted by Keno at 315 am on Feb 4)

Two record temperatures were broken at the Crestone/Baca Weather Station on Monday. The first reading absolutely blew apart the old record for the date of 51 degrees, when the thermometer rose all the way up to 61 degrees by mid afternoon, a full 10 degrees higher then the old record high that was made back in 2000! I can't even recall the last time a record high was broken by a full 10 degrees! This reading was also the soonest Crestone has seen the 60 degree marker in any one year - ever, as the old earliest date was a 61 degree reading on February 20, 1995. This reading was also only 4 degrees off from the warmest February temperature ever reached, which was set on February 28, 2006. A second record was also set for February 3, as the average temperature for the date was broken, at 45.5 degrees. The normal average temp for this day should be 20.1 degrees.

Another two Records broken on Tuesday in the Crestone/Baca
(Posted by Keno at 258 am on Feb 5)

For the second day in a row, the Crestone/Baca saw two more weather records for high temperatures broken, both once again for the daily and average highs for the date. While not as warm as Monday, thanks to cloud cover, the recorded high temperature still was broken, as the 56 degree reading broke the old record of 55 degrees, which was set in 1999. Then, just like on Monday, the day's average temperature was also broken, too, with a reading of 45 degrees, breaking the old record of 40 degrees, set in 2018.

Three Weather Records broken Wednesday in Crestone/Baca
(Posted by Keno at 555 AM, Feb 6)

Day three of our warm streak of seeing record breaking high temperatures happening once again at our Crestone/Baca Weather Station. On Wednesday, February 5, we saw 3 new records set. First, another record high temp for the date was set when the high reached 55 degrees, breaking the old mark of 53 degrees, set in 1995. On this same day two other record highs took place, first, and also for the third day in a row, the day's average temperature was broken when it reached 43.5 degrees (officially rounded off to 44 degrees). The old record was 40 degrees, set in 1999. Then also broken was the highest low temp ever seen for the date, when the thermometer only dropped down to 32 degrees, breaking the old record of 30 degrees, which also took place in 1999.

Will we see yet another record high in our area for today? The NWS says no, as they are forecasting a high of 54 while the record is 55. But they claimed we won't see a record high yesterday, while I went for our area at least seeing us tie the record, and of course, we ending up beating it by 2 degrees. I got a feeling, as long as the sun shines all day, we should at least see a tie today. Time will tell.

Another Day, another two Record Highs broken
(Posted by Keno at 111 AM, Feb 7)

For the fourth day in a row, the Crestone/Baca saw record high temperatures broken, this time two more old records fell. The first one was for the warmest temp seen on this date, when the high reached 56 degrees, breaking the old record of 55 degrees, set in 1999. Then the average temperature for the day was also broken for the fourth day counting, with a reading of 42 degrees. The old mark was 39.5 degrees set in 1995.

Fifth Day in a Row of Record Highs seen, this time, three more set on Friday
(Posted by Keno at 109 AM, Feb 8)

Well, while it was suppose to be warm again on Friday, but another day of record breaking temps weren't expected on this day. But our forecast was off by a few degrees! Oh well. The first of three records broken was for the high for the day, as the old record was 53 degrees (set in 2015) and our thermometer reached 55 degrees. Then the second record to fall was the warmest low ever for this date, when we only dropped down to 35 degrees overnight, smashing the old mark of 31 degrees (set in 2001). This was also one of the earliest first 24 hour free, nonfreezing temperature day of the year. But it would take too much time/work for me to look up all of that to see if that was another record broken too. We usually see this event happen for the first time each year in March or April, not in February. Finally, the third record surpassed on this date was the average temperature, which was 45.5 degrees, rounded off by the NWS to 46 degrees. This reading destroys the old record for the date, which was 38 degrees, set in 2001.

Climate change is 100% real and has been happening for a long time now (regardless of what that nut in the White House claims). As long as Americans keep electing climate change deniers into office, planet Earth is in for big problems - real soon! Our total lack of snow in this part of Colorado for the last 25 plus years, is minor compared to what is taking place globally - and what's to come in the near future will only become worst if we keep doing nothing to reverse this problem.


Winter & Snow Advisories and Warnings Explanations


It's been at least a couple of years, maybe 3 or 4, that I last posted this, and I like to repost it every few years to remind everybody what each advisory covers. I really should have posted this in late October, as we can see these conditions anytime starting in September/October and have already had them issued here this season.

 

All of the following are issued when hazardous winter weather is occurring, imminent or likely. I'm only noting the warnings we see here and will skip the other winter advisories (like a freezing rain or drizzle advisory) that the National Weather Service (NWS) issues elsewhere, since that kind of weather never really ever occurs in our neck of the woods:

- A Winter Weather Advisory is issued for less serious winter weather conditions than warnings - but will still cause significant inconvenience.
- A Winter Storm Watch is issued when conditions are favorable for significant winter weather and/or blizzard conditions within the next three days, but the timing, intensity, or occurrence may still be uncertain.
- A Winter Storm Warning is issued when a combination of heavy snow, blowing snow, and possibly ice mixed with snow is expected to impact the area. Time to act! If caution is not exercised, such storms could lead to situations that may threaten life or property
- A Blizzard Warning is issued when the combination of strong wind, low visibility, and heavy snow will significantly impact daily life. Plus once again, if caution is not exercised, such storms could lead to situations that may threaten life or property. Blizzard conditions are also met when visibility in falling and blowing snow reaches ¼ mile or less.

- A Snow Squall Warning is an alert from the NWS that indicates a short, intense burst of heavy snowfall that can create dangerous driving conditions
- A Wind Chill Watch is issued when Wind Chill Warning criteria are possible in the next 12 to 36 hours.
- A Wind Chill Warning is issued for wind chills of at least minus 25 degrees on the plains, and minus 35 degrees in the mountains.


Some more on this:

A Blizzard Warning has different criteria's for different areas. For one to be issued in the Rocky Mountains, the conditions noted above apply, but winds must be in excess of 50 mph. This criteria also applies to our Foothills and all higher elevations. For our Mountain Valleys and the Colorado Great Plains, the conditions noted above again apply, but winds don't have to be as high, as speeds of 35 mph or higher at lower elevations is all it takes for a Blizzard Warning to be issued. Plus, while large amounts of snow are usually expected, little or no snow at all can be expected when such a warning is issued, since blowing snow from past storms also can meet criteria for a Blizzard Warning to be issued.

 

Heavy snow criteria for Colorado also representative values applied by area: Mountains: 8 inches of snow in 12 hours and/or 12 or more inches in 24 hours. Lower elevations: 6 inches of snow in 12 hours and/or 8 or more inches in 24 hours.

 

For a Wind Chill Watch or Warning: As the wind increases, the body is cooled at a faster rate. The “wind chill” is a way for meteorologists to communicate what the combination of wind and temperature “feels like” to exposed skin. While wind chills negatively affect our bodies - and our pets bodies, they have no effects on other things like your car. While a vehicle's battery and other engine parts are effected negatively by the cold, they aren't effected by wind chill.

 

Our area rarely sees Snow Squall Warnings issued here in the winter, as snow squalls are more likely to occur in the spring here, plus they usually don't last all day long around here like they do in the U.S. Great Lakes. But yes, we can still see them in the winter months here, too.


 A Freeze Watch and a Freeze Warning are issued when freezing conditions are possible in the next 12 to 36 hours. They are only issued during the growing season when widespread temperatures are expected to drop to below 32 degrees. Since these last two watches and warnings have already been issued and already reached this fall on more than two days, they will no longer be issued for the rest of this season.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 




 

 

 

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