Denver Weather: One More Hot Day Before Cooler And Wetter Pattern Develops

DENVER (CBS4) - Wednesday will be another very warm day for most of Colorado with high fire danger again for the Western Slope. An abrupt change in the weather pattern coming soon.

For the Denver metro area, Wednesday will be even hotter than Tuesday when the city officially reached 94 degrees. High temperatures around Denver, Boulder, and Fort Collins will reach the upper 90s to near 100 degrees Wednesday afternoon depending on clouds and the thickness of wildfire smoke. Many locations on the Eastern Plains will reach over 100 degrees.

The record high temperature in Denver on Wednesday is 104 degrees from June 23, 2012. So while it will be hot, temperatures will stay away from records.

Fire danger will also remain elevated for portions of the Western Slope as well as North Park and Middle Park. If another fire were to start in these areas, it could spread quickly. Steamboat Springs, Meeker, Telluride, Durango, and Cortez are all under a Red Flag Warning until 9pm on Wednesday.

Any new fires on Wednesday will be added to the list of more than 20 active wildfires across the state. The largest fires are burning thousands of acres and the weather will remain unfavorable for firefighters again on Wednesday. Improving conditions with cooler temperatures, more clouds, and a better chance for rain will develop on Thursday and Friday.

Better moisture streaming into Colorado for the end of the week will also bring a good chance for showers and mostly non-severe thunderstorms to Denver and the Front Range as well. The best chance for rain in the metro area will be on Friday when it could rain even in the morning hours. That's unusual for late June.

And by Saturday, temperatures will struggle to reach even the lower 70s.