Beautiful Memorial Day to be followed by Tuesday showers
Monday, May 25, 2026
Temperatures are around 70 degrees, on their way to the upper seventies, under mostly sunny skies late this Memorial Day morning in Steamboat Springs. While there may be a chance of showers today, shower chances are good on a cooler Tuesday before decreasing again for the rest of the workweek.
A complex weather pattern is over the western U.S. with a large eddy of low pressure moving southward along the Pacific Northwest coast, two small low pressure areas over Arizona and eastern Texas, and a ridge of high pressure over the northern Rockies.
Some moisture from the Arizona storm will be drawn northward by the southerly winds ahead of the Pacific Northwest storm today, bringing some clouds this afternoon with chances for some showers. But that won’t stop high temperatures from reaching into the high 70s, almost 10 degrees above our 69-degree average.
The Arizona storm will shear apart as it moves northward on Tuesday, combining with moisture moving around the eastern Texas storm and bringing a good chance of afternoon and evening showers, perhaps starting before noon, and cooler temperatures in the low 70s.
Meanwhile, the Pacific Northwest storm is forecast to stall over northern California by midweek, with its southerly winds now carrying drier air overhead on what might be a mostly sunny Wednesday, allowing high temperatures to rise back to the upper 70s.
However the Texas storm will also be moving northward across Kansas by Wednesday, with the weak counterclockwise winds around the storm perhaps bringing some moisture back to Colorado. There is some uncertainty regarding the westward extent of this moisture on Wednesday, with the American GFS having a chance of late-day storms. Weather forecast models are more in agreement on Thursday for a chance of late-day showers, but not before temperatures reach around 80 degrees.
While that stalled northern California eddy is forecast to finally move northeastward around Friday, it may or may not be close enough to affect the weekend weather. So enjoy the traditional Memorial Day barbecues on this beautiful, unofficial first day of the summer season, and I’ll have more details on the coming weekend in my next regularly scheduled weather narrative on Thursday afternoon.
Temperatures to warm during pleasant Memorial Day weekend
Friday, May 22, 2026
After almost a half-inch of rain fell in Steamboat Springs starting Thursday afternoon, and 3” of snow at mid-mountain, a mix of sun and clouds is over town early this Friday afternoon with temperatures around 50 degrees. The cold front yesterday will be followed by a pleasant Memorial Day weekend, with mostly sunny skies and warming temperatures, reaching almost 80 degrees by Memorial Day.
The wintry pattern that brought a series of storms from the Pacific Northwest this past month will revert to a more summery pattern by Memorial Day as winds turn southwesterly, carrying warmer air northward as a storm develops in the Gulf of Alaska. But the storm’s eastward progress will be stalled by a building ridge of high pressure east of the Rockies, a result of the increasingly strong late-spring sun.
Temperatures are forecast to warm about 10 degrees on Saturday, around the 68-degree average, under mostly sunny skies. Even warmer temperatures in the mid-70s are forecast for Sunday, with a possible afternoon and evening shower as southerly winds ahead of the developing Gulf of Alaska storm drag some moisture overhead.
Eighty degrees is forecast for a very nice Memorial Day, with a moderate chance of late-day showers as the Gulf of Alaska moves southward along the Pacific Northwest coast, strengthening a wave of energy ingested from off the southern California coast, and carrying a stronger surge of moisture across the Great Basin and our area.
The best chance of showers will be on Tuesday afternoon as that wave of energy moves northward across Utah, bringing clouds early in the day that will limit our high temperatures to the low 70s.
Enjoy what should be a very nice, long Memorial Day weekend. Note that I will not be able to produce my regularly scheduled on Sunday afternoon, and will try for Monday, but no promises. Regardless, I will be back with the usual programming on Thursday afternoon.
Wintry cold front to start the workweek
Sunday, May 17, 2026
The skies over Steamboat Springs have turned threatening on this Sunday mid-afternoon as a wintry storm affects our area through Monday. After ejecting energy brought high-elevation snowfall and town rainfall last night, thunderstorm chances for the rest of today and tonight will be followed by a cold front on Monday, bringing another round of significant precipitation to our area, including snowflakes in town.
A wintry storm over Nevada is forecast to move across Utah tonight and our area on Monday. An ejecting wave of energy from the storm last night brought 4” of snowfall to the top of the Steamboat Ski Resort, 3” to mid-mountain, and 0.4” of rain to town in the 3 hours between 2 am and 5 am.
The storm is strong, already producing a radar-indicated tornado warning around the Meeker area early this afternoon, and some pellets of soft hail from a thunderstorm near the base of the ski area. Continued thunderstorm chances with locally heavy precipitation, small hail, and strong gusty winds ahead of the main storm are likely for the rest of today and tonight, before it passes almost directly overhead around noon on Monday, bringing a strong mid-morning cold front and moderate-to-heavy precipitation rates.
In fact, while writing this weather narrative, that cell from Meeker just passed overhead with the above hazards, including half-inch soft hail and a temperature drop from 55 degrees at 3 pm to 42 degrees in 20 minutes!
We’ll see rain and snowflakes in town on Monday, with temperatures in the forties, well below our average of 66 degrees, and around another 6” of snowfall on the hill by Monday evening as precipitation tapers off during the afternoon.
The storm will shear apart as it passes over the Rocky Mountains, leaving some energy to our southwest that will form a broad trough of low pressure over the West through midweek as additional Pacific energy moves over the top of a Gulf of Alaska ridge and down its eastern side.
Tuesday will be a much drier, but still-cool day with high temperatures only reaching the low-fifties, with a chance of afternoon showers as energy moves through the trough to our southwest. Afternoon storm chances will persist on a warmer Wednesday, with high temperatures closer to 60 degrees, as a stronger wave of Pacific energy dislodges the trough to our southwest.
This stronger wave moves over our area later Thursday, bringing increasing shower chances, with trailing energy following on Friday for a similar forecast. I am not sure the temperature guidance has factored in these end-of-week waves, but it is predicting mid-60s for Thursday and upper-sixties on Friday.
My next weather narrative may not be in its usual Thursday afternoon time slot, as I’ll be traveling through the long Memorial Day weekend. So if not, then please check back on Friday, or sign up to have this twice-weekly weather narrative delivered to your inbox for free.
Weekend to turn unsettled ahead of an approaching wintry storm
Thursday, May 14, 2026
After a weak cool front passed through Steamboat Springs last evening, temperatures are around 70 degrees under sunny skies this Thursday mid-afternoon. Temperatures will rise into the mid-seventies under mostly sunny skies to start the weekend, with increasing clouds, winds, and eventual shower chances by later Saturday ahead of a wintry storm approaching from the northwest. The storm will move overhead in pieces through the early workweek, leaving much colder temperatures and significant precipitation by Monday night, with some snow possible in town.
A flat ridge of high pressure ahead of an advancing storm in the Gulf of Alaska will bring mostly sunny skies to our area on Friday and Saturday morning, with afternoon breezes and temperatures rising into the mid-70s, around 10 degrees above our 64-degree average. The storm is forecast to cross the Pacific Northwest around Friday night, ingesting cold air from western Canada as it moves into the Great Basin on Saturday.
Winds and clouds will increase by Saturday afternoon, and additional Pacific energy slingshotting around the storm will bring an increasing chance of late-day showers that may continue into the overnight. Cooler temperatures in the mid-60s will follow on Sunday, with uncertain shower chances, as they depend upon the eventual strength, track, and timing of the evolving storm to our west.
But a strong cold front should be arriving Monday morning, with much colder temperatures likely struggling to reach 50 degrees, accompanied by possible snowfall at all elevations. I’ll have more to say about that in my next regularly scheduled weather narrative on Sunday afternoon, so until then, enjoy the beautiful start to the weekend, and look forward to another round of precipitation.
Temperatures to warm into the eighties by midweek
Sunday, May 10, 2026
Cloudless skies and temperatures approaching the mid-sixties are over Steamboat Springs at mid-afternoon on this gorgeous Mother’s Day. After a cool and wintry couple of days last week, summery weather will grace our area this week, with record-high temperatures possible for the days around midweek. An approaching end-of-workweek storm will bring increasing breezes by later Wednesday through Thursday with periods of clouds, but uncertain precipitation chances for Friday.
A ridge of high pressure, downstream of a compact storm moving eastward south of the Aleutian Islands, dominates the West. A weak wave moving across Vancouver will temporarily flatten the ridge of high pressure on Monday, keeping our high temperatures in the upper sixties, around five degrees above our 64-degree average, with continued mostly sunny skies.
The ridge rebounds behind the wave and ahead of the advancing Aleutian storm on Tuesday, allowing temperatures to approach the record high temperature of 81 degrees, set in 1894. We’ve not seen temperatures with an 8-handle since the monthly record 81-degree temperatures on Saturday, March 21, and Wednesday, March 25.
If not on Tuesday, the Wednesday record of 81 degrees set in 1996 will likely fall as the strong ridge of high pressure moves directly over the Rockies, with high temperatures forecast to rise into the mid-eighties.
Meanwhile, the Aleutian storm should be crossing the California-Oregon coast, bringing increasing breezes and clouds by Wednesday afternoon. The storm is forecast to cross the Great Basin on Thursday and bring a cool front through our area on Friday, but not before the 83-degree high temperature record from 1894 is challenged.
While our temperatures will cool into the seventies on Friday behind the front, with uncertain precipitation chances, the high temperature for the day is 85 degrees, also set in 1894. In fact, May 1894 was extraordinarily warm, with 9 high-temperature records set in the 11 days between May 7th and May 17th! That was the warmest May recorded, with an average high temperature of 79.9 degrees, followed by 1897 at 77.9 degrees and 1895 at 76.5 degrees.
Note that record-keeping at the Steamboat Springs did not begin until February 1893; imagine a new settler experiencing what they must have thought was an average May in 1894, reinforced by the next two warmest in 1897 and 1895. Would they have been duped into planning for the continued warmth, or was there enough knowledge passed down in the 20 years since James Crawford first staked his homestead claim to convince them that those warm months were outliers?
In any event, relish the summery week, and I’ll have more details on what we may expect from the advancing Aleutian storm in my next regularly scheduled weather narrative on Thursday afternoon.
