Snowfall expected in high elevations of San Juan Mountains

The National Weather Service issued a winter weather advisory for Southwest Colorado, effective until 6 a.m. Tuesday, The purple areas are part of the winter weather advisory, and pink represents winter storm warnings. The khaki color covering most of the map is for a hazardous weather outlook.

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The National Weather Service issued a winter weather advisory for Southwest Colorado, effective until 6 a.m. Tuesday, The purple areas are part of the winter weather advisory, and pink represents winter storm warnings. The khaki color covering most of the map is for a hazardous weather outlook.

The National Weather Service out of Grand Junction issued a winter weather advisory on Monday for snowfall expected in the San Juan Mountains above 9,500 feet.

The Northwest and Southwest San Juans are expected to get up to 4 inches of snow, it said. The advisory is in effect until Tuesday at 6 a.m.

Tom Renwick, a National Weather Service forecaster, said a winter storm in May “almost always happens.”

“We hate it,” he said, laughing.

Renwick said the storm is “doing exactly what we expected it to,” and that budding plants in Cortez and places under 9,500 feet of elevation aren’t threatened by it.

And although wintry weather isn’t totally well-received this late in the year, Renwick said we certainly need the precipitation and that, since it’s been so dry, mountain pass roads will, at worst, be wet.