Bouts of rain, rain mixed with snow and snow are in the forecast for lower elevations of Southwest Colorado through Friday.

Higher elevations of the San Juan Mountains can expect from 2 to 5 inches of snow from isolated, individual bands of precipitation expected to move through Southwest Colorado before clearing Friday.

Favored peaks above timberline could receive as much as 8 inches from the strongest cells, said Dennis Phillips, a senior meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Grand Junction.

“We’ll have a few more systems coming through mid-week and toward the end of the week,” he said. “So the pattern is staying active and temperatures probably just below normal as well.

“We’ve been seeing it snow all the way down to the base of the mountains, but not much sticks lower down. With the sun high this time of year, it melts pretty quickly.”

Significant accumulations might be seen at elevations above 10,000 feet, he said.

The next wave of precipitation expected to move into the Four Corners should be late Monday night or early Tuesday and extend through Wednesday. Phillips said this trough likely will contain the most precipitation of all storm cells expected this week.

The week’s final cell is expected to move in Thursday evening and extend into Friday.

Thursday and Friday could have periods of fog in lower and higher elevations of Southwest Colorado, Phillips said.

“This one looks to favor more north and central Colorado, and it won’t be quite as strong in the southwest,” he said.

High pressure bringing drier and warm weather should move in by Friday evening, and it will continue through at least the first half of next week.

parmijo@durangoherald.com