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The weekend weather forecast for the high country of Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. Researched and written by professional meteorologist and avid mountaineer, Dan "the weather man" Gottas.
nov4 weather
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Thursday, November 4th, 2010
Rocky Mountain National Park Weather Forecast
Under relatively mild weather conditions, widespread melting over the past week initiated water-ice growth across the alpine, particularly on north facing aspects.
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Week in Review
Infant ice has formed this week from the combination of a new water supply from last weeks healthy snow event, melting forced by the sun and warm free-atmospheric conditions near and above treeline, and a dry atmosphere promoting long-wave radiative cooling of rock faces.
The recent decline in wind speeds over the past three days has also aided growth by reducing the preventative and destructive forces of the sublimation process for both snow-to-vapor and ice-to-vapor respectively.
With the exception of some windy conditions over the weekend and a weak storm system that laid down a minimal amount of new snow, weather conditions were quite mild for this time of the year.
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The last week's wind and temp.'s at 11,500'.
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The Upcoming Weekend's Weather Forecast
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The Upcoming Week
The latest warming trend will continue to gain strength over the coming days, as another ridge of high pressure builds over the region from 11/4 – 11/6.
During this time, free-atmospheric freezing levels will remain above treeline and winds are forecast to remain low. If you’re a weekend warrior and you like nice weather, Saturday is your day.
By Sunday (11/7), a passing wave in the westerlies will signal the beginning of a significant cooling trend. The most notable change at that time will be the wind, as a mountain wave is forecast to amplify and produce 50 mph+ northwesterly gusts above treeline.
A big change in the weather will be felt by Tuesday (11/9) when a strong Pacific cold front drops temperatures back into the 20’s F near treeline and forces another round of snowfall.
This precipitation-forecast details associated with this next weather system are a little too far out in forecast land to be trusted, but current forecast trends indicate that the cold and snowy conditions should stick around through at least next Thursday (11/11).
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(Above) Joel Bea leading his first aid pitch on a private aid clinic with Eli Helmuth of ClimbingLife Guides.
This was one of four private aid climbing clinics that I have taught thus far this autumn for climbers to learn this vital climbing technique that increase gear placement, self-rescue, and leading abilities. Contact me at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
if you are interested in rock training in the coming months.
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Detailed 7-Day Forecast
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The link above will take you to the National Weather Service forecast for the 12,000 foot level near Longs Peak. These forecasts are derived from computer-generated numerical forecasts, and are updated shortly after 3:30 am, 9:30 am, 3:30 pm, and 9:30 pm local time. In the lower right-hand corner of the page, one can view forecasts for other locations in the Park by clicking on the desired location in the terrain map.
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Do-It-Yourself Weather Forecast Links
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The link above provides a list of web links to various sites containing a variety of meteorological data and information. Collectively, these resources can be used to monitor and study current weather conditions, as well short-term, medium-range, and climate forecasts
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