Last throes of winter

While college students enjoy spring break skiing, water resources managers are watching for the first signs of spring runoff.

Upper Colorado SnoWatch page

Runoff follows a predictable sequence. Our low-elevation SNOTEL sites reach their peak accumulation and start to melt during the last week of March, while our highest-elevation sites continue accumulating snow until the first week of May. Willow Creek Reservoir receives its highest inflow during the last week of May, but our other watersheds typically peak during the first week of June.

Our West Slope watersheds start to show snowmelt at least a couple of weeks before our East Slope watersheds. This is counterintuitive since the West Slope watersheds are at a higher elevation. But solar radiation is a big driver of snowmelt activity, and West Slope watersheds have more southerly and westerly exposures than the East Slope.

Examples of low-elevation sites to watch are Stillwater Creek and Phantom Valley, both located in watersheds tributary to Lake Granby. Our Upper Colorado SnoWatch page tracks the action if you want to see it for yourself.