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Deep Freeze Starts Tonight, Snow Late Tuesday

By Ashton Altieri

DENVER (CBS4) - Other than gusty winds and light snow in the higher foothills, Monday will be a generally quiet and mild day for Denver and the Front Range. High temperatures will be in the lower 50s or just a few degrees cooler than Sunday.

Everything changes Monday night when an arctic cold front that originated in Canada moves into Colorado. Temperatures will quickly drop behind the front and morning lows in the metro area Tuesday morning will be near 10 degrees. A few flurries are possible around Denver, Boulder, and Fort Collins Monday night into Tuesday but there will be no accumulating snow outside of the mountains where 2-5 inches is expected by daybreak Tuesday. Blowing snow will also be a problem in the mountains including the I-70 corridor above Floyd Hill.

Most of the day on Tuesday will be dry (but COLD!) in Denver area. Snow is possible at any time but should largely hold off until after 4 p.m. when snow will start impacting virtually the entire urban corridor. A total of 1-5 inches of snow is expected for the Denver metro area by early Wednesday morning. Higher amounts will be found over Larimer and Weld Counties including Fort Collins where 3-6 inches are possible. 4-7 inches seems likely for the NE Plains of Colorado including the Akron, Sterling, Holyoke, and Wray areas.

Snow Forecast - Tuesday & Wednesday

The mountains will also see significant snowfall Tuesday night into Wednesday with up to 15 inches of accumulation over the higher peaks and passes including at many of the ski areas.

In addition to the snow, the coldest weather in two years will impact the region for the middle of of the week. High temperatures on Tuesday and Wednesday will only reach the teens and 20s while over lows will be in the single digits above and below zero.

Drier and milder weather will return to Denver area Friday and will continue through the weekend. Meanwhile another winter storm will impact the mountains Friday with several inches of snow by Saturday morning. Saturday should be a powder day at many ski areas.

Ashton Altieri is a Certified Broadcast Meteorologist. Watch him on the CBS4 Morning News weekdays from 4:30 a.m. to 7 a.m. Connect with Ashton on Facebook and on Twitter @AshtonCBS4.

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