Colorado Weather: More Snow Slams The Mountains While Denver Waits Until New Year's Eve

DENVER (CBS4) - It appears increasingly likely Denver could get accumulating snow at the end of the week just as the new year begins. Until then, snow will be found in the mountains every day this week.

The heaviest snow of the week will fall late Monday into early Tuesday and that is why most mountain areas in Colorado are under a Winter Storm Warning or Winter Weather Advisory through 8 a.m. Tuesday.

The warning for the most severe impacts is west of Vail Pass. The mountains surrounding Vail, Aspen, Crested Butte, and Steamboat Springs will get 6 to 12 inches of additional snow through early Tuesday. The southern San Juan mountains could get even more with up to 16 inches of additional snow for ski areas like Purgatory and Silverton Mountain.

For Summit County and the mountains closer to Denver, there is a Winter Weather advisory for 4 to 9 inches of additional snow through early Tuesday. The advisory includes Winter Park and Interstate 70 between Georgetown and Copper Mountain.

There is a chance a few flurries or very light snow showers should sneak east of out the mountains and across over Denver and the Front Range Monday night after 10 pm. If this happens, no accumulation is expected.

That will be the only chance for snow in Denver until late Friday when the best chance for snow in weeks finally arrives in the metro area. The preliminary snow forecast for Denver Friday night is 1 to 4 inches. So it could be very a snowy New Year's Eve in the metro area.

It will also feel much more like winter statewide this week. Temperatures won't reach out of the 30s in Denver on Tuesday and Wednesday and overnight lows should dip into the single digits Friday night.