Southern Colorado sees dry Thursday before weekend storms arrive

Southern Colorado is enjoying a quiet Thursday before a weather system changes the forecast.

A dry westerly flow keeps conditions calm overnight into Thursday. Locally dense fog is possible on the eastern plains late tonight into early morning. Isolated showers or a stray storm might touch the far southeast border by Thursday afternoon. Overnight lows will drop into the 20s in high mountain valleys and into the 30s to lower 40s across the plains.

In Pueblo, another warm afternoon is expected with a high near 65 degrees and a low of 39. Skies will be mostly clear to partly cloudy. Colorado Springs will see a high of 64 and a low of 38 with partly sunny skies. Canon City is forecast to reach 68 with a low of 40. Woodland Park will be cooler with a high of 58 and a low of 37.

The shift begins Friday as a deepening Pacific trough sends moisture toward western Colorado. A weak disturbance to the south brings a chance of showers over the far southeast plains and light showers in the mountains. On Saturday, increasing southwest flow aloft will pull moist Pacific air across the region. Showers are expected to build through the day over the high mountains while lower elevations stay mostly mild.

The most impactful part of the pattern arrives from Sunday through Tuesday. An upper-level trough strengthens over the Four Corners, bringing heavy mountain snow and rain to the Continental Divide and the San Luis Valley. Forecasters noted additional flooding potential in those areas, though the overall threat looks low. Snow is expected to increase on Monday. A wintry mix or rain and snow showers could spread into mountain valleys and adjacent plains as temperatures drop. Windy conditions are expected on the back side of the system.