Buckskin Joe SNOTEL

11,160 ftPark County, ColoradoNRCS site 938Updated Fri Oct 16, 4:00 AM MDT

SWE1.0″500% of median
Depth3″— 48 h
Temp16°16°–33° 48 h
Thu 15Past 48 hSnow water equivalent1.0″ now011.0″Snow depth3″ now02.53″Air temperature16°F now20°32°16°FNow · Fri 4 AM
ThuPast 48 hSnow water equivalent1.0″ now011.0″Snow depth3″ now02.53″Air temperature16°F now20°32°16°FNow · Fri 4 AM
Sat 10Sun 11Mon 12Tue 13Wed 14Thu 15Past 7 daysSnow water equivalent1.0″ now011.0″Snow depth3″ now02.53″Air temperature16°F now50°32°16°FNow · Fri 4 AM
SatSunMonTueWedThuPast 7 daysSnow water equivalent1.0″ now011.0″Snow depth3″ now02.53″Air temperature16°F now50°32°16°FNow · Fri 4 AM
0″5″10″OctNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJulMedian peak 12.6″ · May 21.0″ today · 500% of median
0″5″10″ONDJFMAMJJMedian peak 12.6″ · May 21.0″ today · 500% of median
<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

500%of the 1991–2020 median for today

1.0″ of water today against a median of 0.2″, 400% above median. The median peak is 12.6″ around May 2.

Nearby SNOTEL stations

All Colorado
StationElevationDepth, 7 daysSWE% medianDepth48 h
Hoosier PassCO · 5 mi11,600 ft0.8″200%4″+4″
Fremont PassCO · 7 mi11,310 ft0.2″33%0″0″
Copper MountainCO · 13 mi10,500 ft0.0″—0″0″
Michigan CreekCO · 14 mi10,700 ft0.8″400%1″+1″
Rough And TumbleCO · 19 mi10,420 ft1.5″—1″+1″
IvanhoeCO · 23 mi10,540 ft0.1″33%0″—
Jackwhacker GulchCO · 25 mi11,030 ft0.6″200%3″+3″
Vail MountainCO · 26 mi10,290 ft0.3″150%1″+1″

Station details

Elevation
11,160 ft
Location
39.3038°N, 106.1132°W
County
Park County, Colorado
Basin
South Platte Headwaters · HUC 10190001
Network
NRCS SNOTEL · site 938
Station ID
938:CO:SNTL · SHEF BUCC2
Reporting since
August 1998
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. Buckskin Joe's 3″ of snow holds 1.0″ of water, so the pack is about 33% water. Fresh powder is often 5 to 10%; old spring snow can be 40% or more.

How often does Buckskin Joe 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 Buckskin Joe SNOTEL?

At 11,160 ft in Park County, Colorado (39.3038°N, 106.1132°W), in the South Platte Headwaters 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.