Black Mountain SNOTEL

8,940 ftLarimer County, ColoradoNRCS site 1161Updated Fri Oct 16, 4:00 AM MDT

SWE0.7″no median
Depth5″+5″ 48 h
Temp22°22°–36° 48 h
Thu 15Past 48 hSnow water equivalent0.7″ now010.7″Snow depth5″ now055″Air temperature22°F now20°30°32°22°FNow · Fri 4 AM
ThuPast 48 hSnow water equivalent0.7″ now010.7″Snow depth5″ now055″Air temperature22°F now20°30°32°22°FNow · Fri 4 AM
Sat 10Sun 11Mon 12Tue 13Wed 14Thu 15Past 7 daysSnow water equivalent0.7″ now010.7″Snow depth5″ now055″Air temperature22°F now50°32°22°FNow · Fri 4 AM
SatSunMonTueWedThuPast 7 daysSnow water equivalent0.7″ now010.7″Snow depth5″ now055″Air temperature22°F now50°32°22°FNow · Fri 4 AM
0″5″10″OctNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJulMedian peak 12.5″ · Apr 170.7″ today
0″5″10″ONDJFMAMJJMedian peak 12.5″ · Apr 170.7″ today
<50%50–6970–8990–109110–129130–149150%+
0″2″8″16″32″+
0″6″24″48″100″+
Map
Open in the Vertex map

Next 3 days

The forecast for this station is on its way.

16-day outlook, three models

Snowpack vs. median

—%of the 1991–2020 median for today

Nearby SNOTEL stations

All Colorado
StationElevationDepth, 7 daysSWE% medianDepth48 h
Deadman HillCO · 8 mi10,240 ft1.0″125%5″+4″
RoachCO · 20 mi9,710 ft0.5″125%4″+4″
Hourglass LakeCO · 22 mi9,380 ft0.0″—0″0″
RawahCO · 22 mi9,100 ft0.6″—2″+1″
Long Draw ReservoirCO · 27 mi9,980 ft0.0″0%0″0″
Joe WrightCO · 27 mi10,140 ft0.4″200%2″+2″
Crow CreekWY · 28 mi8,320 ft1.5″—4″+3″
Willow ParkCO · 32 mi10,710 ft0.6″—1″0″

Station details

Elevation
8,940 ft
Location
40.8879°N, 105.6640°W
County
Larimer County, Colorado
Basin
Cache La Poudre · HUC 10190007
Network
NRCS SNOTEL · site 1161
Station ID
1161:CO:SNTL · SHEF BMNC2
Reporting since
October 2010
NWS forecast office
Denver/Boulder (BOU) discussion

Questions

What is snow water equivalent (SWE)?

SWE is the depth of water you would get by melting the whole snowpack. Black Mountain's 5″ of snow holds 0.7″ of water, so the pack is about 14% water. Fresh powder is often 5 to 10%; old spring snow can be 40% or more.

How often does Black Mountain SNOTEL update?

The station reports every hour by radio telemetry to the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. This page refreshes each hour. Readings are provisional until NRCS quality control.

What does “% of median” mean?

It compares today’s SWE with the 1991–2020 median for the same calendar day at this station. Above 100% means more water in the snowpack than on a typical year’s same date.

Where is Black Mountain SNOTEL?

At 8,940 ft in Larimer County, Colorado (40.8879°N, 105.6640°W), in the Cache La Poudre basin.

How is the snow forecast made?

Vertex runs the HRRR, RRFS and GFS weather models at the station’s own elevation and carries the measured snowpack forward hour by hour. Treat it as guidance, and check your avalanche center’s forecast before heading out.