Closed out 2017 with a short hour's ride on December 29th in the late afternoon with the thermometer hovering around 50 degrees in beautiful western Colorado. Had a friend head down south over the past two weeks and he reports hardly any snow except on the high peaks in the San Juans with practically none in the valleys.
We have had no snow except for a trace (a "skiff") duration of about twenty minutes some ten days ago.
Time to bring out the Ute native medicine men for a ceremony in conjunction with a more scientific/modern method of firing up the cloud seeding generators (except there aren't any clouds!). Snow is the only water we get in these parts; that is what supplies our agriculture and livestock come spring and summer.
It's a La Nina year and the jet stream may be deflected from the Great Divide's southwestern section of our state until late winter or early spring.
A simple conclusion is that we need moisture in a big way for the lower and upper atmospheres to catch up. Pretty sparce according to this map.
https://www.wcc.nrcs.usda.gov/ftpref/states/co/snow/state/daily/co_update_snow.pdfThe sole positive takeaway from this is that we are still rolling with a full (union) suit and winter gloves; good for the head and the heart.
Cheers for 2018.
