A warm, summer-like pattern is about to take over the Front Range in the middle of May. This week’s weather is driven by a robust mid‑level ridge anchored over the Desert Southwest, producing strong subsidence and a sustained warm anomaly across Colorado. A weak cold front on Tuesday will briefly cool us off, but its effect will be short-lived, with near-record heat building back in by midweek. Rain chances through the extended period remains quite low given the setup, but the late-week period is somewhat uncertain. We break down the dynamics driving this pattern and the implications it will have for the Denver–Boulder corridor through this warm, mostly dry stretch ahead.
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April 2026 wrapped up as another water‑starved month along the Front Range, trading March’s record heat for a parade of fast‑moving systems that looked promising on paper but rarely delivered meaningful moisture. Temperatures still ran warmer than average overall, punctuated by a few sharp cold fronts that briefly returned a wintry feel before the pattern snapped back to mild, windy, and dry. Fire danger stayed elevated on many days, and despite several rounds of light precipitation, Colorado’s snowpack remained historically low heading into May. Let’s take a graphical look at how April unfolded across Boulder, Denver, and the Front Range — and how it stacked up against climatology.
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❄️ Storm aftermath — Yesterday’s system exited by afternoon but left widespread tree damage and a striking fresh May snowpack visible on satellite.
🌡️ Overnight downslope — Warm, late‑night downslope spared most of the Denver Metro from a hard freeze; only a few pockets came close.
🌤️ Shortwaves ahead — Two weak disturbances (Thu & Sat) bring small rain chances and minor fronts, but overall conditions stay mild and mostly dry through the weekend.
☀️ Warm pattern returns — Weekend stays pleasant with isolated storms; next week heats up significantly as a ridge builds, pushing highs into the 80s.
This powerful May storm has buried the Front Range in heavy, wet snow overnight, with Boulder picking up around 10 inches while the Foothills are dealing with even bigger totals in excess of 2 feet in spots. Snow will wind down around midday, but winter has one more card to play tonight as a hard freeze settles in. We check in on the latest snow totals, temperatures, power outages and how much additional snow to expect.
The spring storm rolling across the Front Range has already pulled off quite a transformation, shifting from rumbles of thunder to flakes of heavy, wet snow in just 12 hours. What comes next is shaping up to be even more impressive. Two separate storm systems are preparing to merge over Colorado and the result will be a long stretch of heavy wet snowfall that will have significant impacts for our fully leafed-out trees and power lines. We break down why snowfall amounts have ticked up a tad since yesterday, when and where power outages are most likely to occur, and the broader impacts this wet storm will have across Boulder, Denver and the Front Range.
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