By the way, the models aren't doing too well (i.e. not very consistent) predicting the two upcoming storms. BUT, it looks like some good snows for much of the state on Thursday night through Friday afternoon, and again from about midday Saturday through Sunday afternoon.
The Thursday night > Friday storm could throw down about 0.75" of liquid (maybe 1" in lucky areas). The temperatures around 10k are a little warm for efficient snow production (-5C north, -2.5C south), so I would guess at ratios around 13:1 (snow:liquid) with this storm. That puts the favored areas at 8-12" - not too shabby. I think the winners could be Steamboat and the Elk mountains. Even after the cold front passes late Thursday night, I'm not confident that the winds will turn to the northwest. I think they'll stay west or just a shade south of west. This direction can be good for Steamboat and the Elks, and Beaver Creek, but is generally not so good for Vail, Summit Co., or the front range.
The Saturday > Sunday storm is much colder, with temperatures at 10k by Sunday morning between -10C to -15C. This could lead to more snow with less moisture. This storm could be similar to the halloween storm of two weeks ago - hit or miss in the mountains west of the divide (a few inches to maybe 12"+), and lots of snow on the east side of the divide and the plains. The models are still not handling this storm very well (big differences between the different models and with each new 'run' of the model every 6 or 12 hours), but I would image that they will trend to make this storm a little stronger and further south.
Thoughts? I'll write this up here later on tonight with some graphics:
www.coloradopowderforecast.com
By the way, the models aren't doing too well (i.e. not very consistent) predicting the two upcoming storms. BUT, it looks like some good snows for much of the state on Thursday night through Friday afternoon, and again from about midday Saturday through Sunday afternoon.