Colorado Weather: Avalanche danger ramping up Monday

DENVER(CBS)- Denver and eastern Colorado will experience a mild-mannered Monday. But, in the mountains and west the next big thing is a cold front and deep Pacific trough that will be bringing back snow and wind.

Many northern and central mountains already have a Winter Weather Advisory in place Sunday night thru Tuesday morning. Some spots could see up to a foot of snow and wind gusts up to 35 mph.

The strong winds and snow of last Friday have established very weak slabs of snow in backcountry avalanche areas. As a result, the added snow and wind expected from this weeks storm system will make those conditions even worse to start the week. There is an Avalanche Warning in place for mountain areas included along the Front Range, Gore and Park Range, Flat Tops and the Elk Head Mountains. Very dangerous avalanche conditions will last thru Tuesday. Backcountry travel is not recommended Monday or Tuesday.

For the Denver metro area and the northern I-25 corridor, Monday will be breezy but, mild again. The front is expected to push thru the area in the late afternoon or early evening. This may produce a light rain/snow mix overnight Monday into Tuesday with little to no accumulation.