Deflated snowpack levels are beginning to rise again in Colorado after nearly a month of stagnation. 

Snowpack is tracked by looking at the snow-water equivalent, a measurement which shows how much liquid water is held within the state’s snowfields — a crucial indicator for how Colorado’s streams and reservoirs will fare come runoff season. 

A cycle of heavy snow storms in November sent snowpack levels surging well above normal, particularly in the state’s southern regions. But as conditions dried after Thanksgiving, levels flatlined. 

---

---

As of mid-December, statewide snowpack levels have tracked below the 30-year median and even began to approach historical lows for this time of year. But a smattering of storms in the High Country since Christmas have begun to reverse the trend. 

In a Friday blog post, OpenSnow founding meteorologist Joel Gratz predicted levels may near normal come Dec. 31 thanks to more storms in the forecast. 

---

---

“Colorado is in the flow with a storm that just moved through on Thursday night, another storm on Friday and Friday night, more snow on Saturday night, and a final storm on Monday,” Gratz wrote. 

As of Friday, statewide snowpack stood at 87% of the 30-year median, according to data from the Natural Resources Conservation Service. The Arkansas River Basin, which encompasses south-central Colorado, is the only basin in the state with snowpack currently above 100%. 

Most central mountain ski areas accrued between 4 and 6 inches of fresh snow as of Thursday night, with another 4-8 inches possible come Saturday morning, wrote OpenSnow meteorologist Sam Collentine, in a separate post. 

“It does look like we’ll catch a slightly longer break for most of the day on Sunday ahead of our final round of snow for 2024 beginning on Sunday night,” Collentine wrote. “Expect partly sunny skies and temps in the 20s on Sunday.” 

He predicted another 4-8 inches from Sunday night through Monday, Dec. 30, with “potentially more if all of the ingredients come together.” 

Here’s how much snow major Colorado ski resorts are predicted to see through Dec. 30, according to OpenSnow projections: 

• Steamboat Ski Resort: 26 inches 
• Loveland Ski Area: 14 inches 
• Vail Mountain: 12 inches 
• Arapahoe Basin Ski Area: 12 inches 
• Breckenridge Ski Resort: 12 inches 
• Copper Mountain Resort: 12 inches 
• Beaver Creek Resort: 11 inches 
• Keystone Resort: 10 inches
• Winter Park Ski Resort: 9 inches 
• Aspen Snowmass: 8 inches 

The Colorado Avalanche Information Center is warning of a “significant increase in avalanche danger” over the weekend and into New Year’s Day. 

The center’s director, Ethan Greene, said in a statement that pent up demand for snow and an “exceptionally weak” snowpack could collide to make for the riskiest avalanche conditions in a month. 

Looking to the beginning of January, Colorado’s mountains could again enter a prolonged dry spell.

“During the first 10 days of January, the storm track will stay mostly to the north of Colorado, and we’ll need to get lucky and have a storm dip far enough south to bring snow,” Gratz wrote.

A projection from the Climate Prediction Center shows Colorado’s central and northwestern mountains will see near-normal precipitation and temperatures through Jan. 9. 

A long-term forecast for the entire month of January shows much of the state with equal chances of seeing below or above-normal precipitation and temperatures.