Colorado Weather: From mild to wild to start the week

Tuesday will be a First Alert Weather Day for snow and bitter cold. The timing of the snow will be the biggest issue.

Before the storm arrives, Monday will be another mild and dry day along the Front Range. High temperatures will be slightly above normal in the Denver metro area with lower 50s under partly cloudy skies.

Snow will gradually develop in the mountains during the day on Monday and snow is likely along the I-70 mountain corridor by Monday evening. Colorado's northern mountains will get the heaviest snowfall with this storm and will have the worst travel conditions. Areas like Rabbit Ears Pass and the Rocky Mountain National Park region are under a Winter Storm Warning through 5 p.m. on Tuesday for 8-16 inches of snow.

Elsewhere in the high country there is a Winter Weather Advisory Advisory through Tuesday afternoon for at least 5-10 inches in most areas including along the I-70 mountain corridor in Summit and Eagle Counties. Snow totals will be less in the San Juan Mountains in southwest Colorado with 4-8 inches on average.

For Denver and the Front Range, there is a Winter Weather Advisory from 2 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Tuesday for 2-5 inches of snow. The higher amounts are expected west of I-25 while areas farther east will likely be closer to 2 inches of snow including at the airport.

Most of the snow will fall just before and/or during the morning commute on Tuesday. Therefore the drive along the Front Range and across portions of the Eastern Plains will be effected by snowy and icy roads as the snow ramps up. Travel could be very slow and school delays are possible.

The storm system will also drop temperatures below freezing for most of the state on Tuesday. Overnight lows will drop into the single digits and below zero in some areas for Wednesday morning.

A quick recovery is expected as we will clear out and start warming Wednesday into Friday.