Why did we get so much snow?

As a StormTracker 13 team, we take our forecasts seriously in every effort to be accurate. We analyzed each aspect of Sunday’s storm to answer the question: why did some areas get more snow than others?

It was a mess Sunday. The roads were snowy, slushy and sloppy to say the least. Manitou Springs stacked up nearly a foot of snow! However, people I talked to said they didn’t mind the winter weather too much.

“I love the snow. I love the cold. Not used to it because I’m from New Mexico, but it’s different. I like it,” said Colorado Springs resident Nicole Jacquez.

I was surprised to find that people were generally understanding when it comes to the difficulty of forecasting here.

“Weather changes every day. So one day it’s snowy, one day the sun’s out – bright and shining,” added Jacquez.

“I think it’s super difficult because it’s really impossible to predict it … It’s always changing in Colorado – I don’t know. It’s normal,” said Colorado Springs resident Kathleen McKillip.

In this story, we break down the hotspots that saw the most snow Sunday into Monday morning. The foothills west of Colorado Springs proper stacked up hefty totals. Some in northeast Colorado Springs received good amounts, too. Just as expected, the mountains southwest of Pueblo got slammed with snow! That includes areas like Rye and Beulah. Meanwhile, some along the Raton Mesa accumulated impressive totals as well.

Here are the numbers: One spotter reported more than 17 inches of snow in Wetmore. Beulah and Rye came in second and third for snowiest spots. One person in Black Forest measured more than a foot of snow. Peyton got eleven inches and Manitou Springs accumulated more than ten.

This storm had an incredibly effective “snow growth layer” way up in the atmosphere…somewhere between -10 and -20 degrees. This layer was saturated, allowing for big, fluffy snowflakes to form and fall heavily, easily stacking up in the hotspot areas previously mentioned.

The northeasterly winds played a big role in the dynamics of this storm, creating that classic “upsloping” effect on the foothills and higher terrain.