Cold, windy Sunday across Colorado; 80s possible by Wednesday
A blast of colder air swept across Colorado overnight, bringing light snow and strong winds to the Front Range and prompting a First Alert Weather Day for Sunday.
The snow is expected to taper off through the morning as drier air moves into the region. While snowfall amounts are limited for the metro area, conditions remain active because of strong winds and colder temperatures.
Wind will be the bigger story through the day. Gusts across the plains could reach 50 to 60 mph, especially east of the I-25 corridor. Those winds could create blowing dust on the eastern plains and reduce visibility in some areas prompting a Blowing Dust Warning on the eastern plains through Sunday afternoon.
In the mountains, snow will gradually decrease Sunday, but gusty winds may still produce blowing snow over higher passes, which could lead to brief travel impacts at times.
Temperatures will feel dramatically different compared to Saturday's warmth. Highs Sunday will struggle to climb much above freezing across the Denver metro and nearby plains, making for a cold and blustery end to the weekend. Sunday night will likely be the coldest night of the upcoming week, with lows falling into the teens across the plains and single digits in the mountains.
The colder pattern won't last long. Temperatures will begin warming quickly Monday, rising 15 to 20 degrees compared to Sunday. A few light snow showers could linger in the mountains, but significant impacts are not expected.
By Tuesday, warmer and drier conditions return across much of Colorado, and fire weather concerns may redevelop on the plains as winds increase and humidity drops. Looking ahead to the middle of the week strong high pressure developing across the western United States could push temperatures 20 to 30 degrees above normal, with highs possibly reaching the 80s across the lower elevations Wednesday and into next weekend.
If that happens, it could challenge or break March temperature records across parts of Colorado.
