Afternoon rainstorms set in last weekend and continued through Tuesday, bringing stormy skies and plenty of wet shoes across Durango. That followed similarly rainy weather over Fourth of July weekend.
Gillian Felton, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Grand Junction, which serves Southwest Colorado, said Durango’s monsoon season hasn’t officially arrived yet – but it’s likely coming soon.
“We had a little bit of monsoon activity around the Fourth, but since then, we’ve seen a lot of dry thunderstorms with a lot of virga precipitation – so, moisture not making it to the ground,” Felton said.
According to Felton, it’s difficult to say exactly when the monsoons officially begin.
But she said more rain is likely in the near future.
“When we look toward the end of this week, some of the models are suggesting we might get a push of monsoonal moisture into the region, but it looks like there's a chance that won't last very long,” Felton said.
Whether the rainy weather sticks around depends on where high pressure sets up south of Durango, Felton said.
Based on its positioning, moisture can stream in from the Pacific or from the Baja region and move toward Southwest Colorado. According to Felton, high pressure coming from the Pacific has been “moving around a bit,” causing fleeting showers followed by brief dry spells across Durango.
Felton said Durango has received 1.5 inches of precipitation so far this month, below the 1.74-inch average at the Fort Lewis weather station since 2000.
However, Felton said moisture levels could reach closer to average before the end of the month, with scattered rainstorms expected to continue, and possibly increase, as August approaches.
Felton advised those planning outdoor activities in July and August, when monsoon activity is common, to monitor real-time weather reports and make safe decisions about recreating in bad weather.
epond@durangoherald.com
