Big Colorado snow moving in

[Bill, KD0HG]

..And I've got Ohio relatives in Denver to talk a seminar. Will be mobile on Kubota tractor and loader first thing in AM (long underwear, down coat, scarf and mittens, radio headset, fully loaded with diesel and a Bloody Mary). There's going to be 3-4 foot drifts on the driveway. Enjoy it out east in a few days.

---

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
518 PM MST THU FEB 2 2012

...MAJOR WINTER STORM STILL ON TRACK TO AFFECT NORTHERN COLORADO
TONIGHT THROUGH EARLY SATURDAY MORNING WITH BLIZZARD CONDITIONS
OVER THE PALMER DIVIDE AND PLAINS OF NORTHEAST COLORADO...

.A WINTER STORM SYSTEM ACROSS SOUTHERN COLORADO WILL CONTINUE TO
STRENGTHEN TONIGHT WITH SNOW ALREADY FALLING ACROSS PORTIONS OF
THE EASTERN PLAINS EAST AND SOUTH OF DENVER. SNOWFALL WILL
RAPIDLY DEVELOP OVER THE REST OF THE PLAINS AND URBAN CORRIDOR AND
BECOME WIDESPREAD BETWEEN 6 AND 7 PM. HEAVY SNOW HAS ALREADY
OCCURRED ACROSS EL PASO COUNTY WHERE SNOWFALL RATES OF 1 TO 2 INCHES
PER HOUR HAVE BEEN REPORTED. THIS HEAVIER SNOW IS ALSO MOVING INTO
PORTIONS OF DOUGLAS AND ELBERT COUNTIES.

THE STORM WILL BE SLOW MOVING...SO A PROLONGED PERIOD OF SNOW
WILL OCCUR FROM THIS EVENING THROUGH EARLY SATURDAY WITH HEAVY
SNOW AT TIMES TONIGHT AND FRIDAY. OVER THE PLAINS OF NORTHEASTERN
COLORADO THE SNOW WILL BE ACCOMPANIED BY STRONG WINDS CREATING
BLIZZARD CONDITIONS LATE TONIGHT INTO SATURDAY MORNING WITH VERY
POOR VISIBILITIES.

...BLIZZARD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 11 PM THIS EVENING TO
11 PM MST FRIDAY...

* TIMING...SNOW...HEAVY AT TIMES WILL CONTINUE THROUGH FRIDAY
  NIGHT...THEN GRADUALLY DECREASE BY SATURDAY MORNING.

* SNOW ACCUMULATIONS...TOTAL ACCUMULATIONS OF 12 TO 24 INCHES
  CAN BE EXPECTED.

* WINDS/VISIBILITY...NORTH WINDS WILL INCREASE TO 20 TO 30 AFTER
  MIDNIGHT AND CONTINUE ON FRIDAY...WITH GUSTS UP TO 40 MPH.
  BLIZZARD CONDITIONS WILL DEVELOP AFTER MIDNIGHT AND CONTINUE
  THROUGH FRIDAY EVENING WITH VISIBILITIES NEAR ZERO AT TIMES.

* IMPACTS...SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW WILL MAKE TRAVEL DIFFICULT IF
  NOT IMPOSSIBLE LATE TONIGHT.

* OTHER IMPACTS...PETS AND LIVESTOCK EXPOSED TO THE HARSH WINTER
  CONDITIONS SHOULD BE MOVED TO A PROTECTIVE LOCATION BEFORE THE
  ONSET OF THIS STORM.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

TRAVEL WILL BECOME EXTREMELY DANGEROUS OR IMPOSSIBLE LATE TONIGHT
THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT AND IS DISCOURAGED DUE TO EXPECTED BLIZZARD
CONDITIONS. CONSIDER DELAYING TRAVEL UNTIL CONDITIONS IMPROVE
LATER THIS WEEKEND. ROAD CLOSURES ARE A POSSIBILITY OVER THE
PLAINS AND ACROSS THE PALMER DIVIDE.

IF YOU MUST TRAVEL DURING THIS STORM...KEEP EXTRA FOOD...WATER...
A FLASHLIGHT...AND DRY CLOTHING IN YOUR VEHICLE. IF YOU GET
STRANDED...STAY WITH YOUR VEHICLE AND WAIT FOR HELP TO ARRIVE.

[KA8WTK]

WOW! I was just in Denver Tuesday on my way back from Oregon and it was 52F!

Bill KA8WTK

[John K5PRO]

Hope you get it Bill, the moisture is always welcome. We're just getting the southern edge tonight in the mtns down here, just a few inches I bet.

[W3GMS]

Bill,
Send some of that snow to S.E. PA!  I really like the winter with lots of snow and we just don't get all that much anymore.  We had one snow about a month ago but it was only a few inches. 
Maybe its time Martha and I move to Maine!
73,
Joe, W3GMS 

[The Slab Bacon]

We now have a grand total of 1" of snowfall for the year!! Pretty pathetic! ! !

I haven't even had a good reason to fire up my new second-hand snow blower yet.

After getting over 80" year before last, and a fair amount last year, this year I'm on the mend and can't even go out and play in the snow!

And.......er..........furthermore, if we don't get some snow and sub-freezing temps, we are going to have a bumper crop of mosquitos this year. Those dive-bombers have been so bad here that they will suck you dry then carry the corpse away!!

[flintstone mop]

It looks like it will peter out by the time it reaches the midwest and be South of us here in Western Pa.
There's hope for you Frank, for some sort of precip.

Fred

[Bill, KD0HG]

I wish it would peter out right now. Just came in after an hour working with the front end loader. Drifts more than 3 feet now and whiteout conditions. Maybe some pictures later, hot coffee for right now.

[Bill, KD0HG]

We're still marooned back here. Snow drifted 4 feet deep along the road, too deep to plow. Spent all day on tractor, have to use front end loader to scoop and dump, there's 6 foot walls of snow on both sides of the road where I dumped it. Looks like driving through a tunnel.

I am chilled to the bone and exhausted.

Neighbor has a way big 4x4 tractor and we're going to hammer it in the morning.

Still got lots of food and essentials, power is still on.

Bill

[WA3VJB]

I am chilled to the bone and exhausted.
//
Still got lots of food and essentials, power is still on.
//

Bill you seriously take care -- don't try to go at it too much. Don't want any casualties.
Just get on the radio with a hot chocolate and hang out with us.

Plenty of band at 0255 GMT
http://www.vhfdx.info/spots/map.php?Lan=E&Frec=3&ML=M&Map=W2L&DXC=N&HF=S&GL=N

[flintstone mop]

Mother Earth has flipped her weather patterns. It is extreme cold and snow in big hunk of Europe.........- C temps......- 10 C

http://www.wunderground.com/severe/europe.html

Bill, don't fight Ma Nature, stay in and get warm. Be ready to keep your family safe.

EDIT 10AM Saturday....looks like your storm is giving us a different forecast........it didn't go South-East of Western Pa. to Pittsburgh........inside 'to-do-things'

[John K5PRO]

It was partly cloudy here in northern New Mexico all day yesterday (Friday), but at 7 PM it let loose on the mountain. I had to drive down to Rio Grande valley and it was near white out driving in 4WD. I don't know how much they got up there in Los Alamos. At my home it was < inch, and today it got warm and sunny and melted.

How's Denver today?

[Bill, KD0HG]

Denver set a record for the most snowfall ever in a 24 hour period. I'd say we got a good 24" here, but the killer was the incessant wind. Everything I plowed out on Friday was buried again on Saturday, drifted over a good 5 feet in places.  I met a new neighbor down our shared road who moved here from LA. Was a retired engineer that designed the first DirecTV satellite, he rattled off the transponders on board and how much power they are..LOL, another RF guy. He had a Kubota tractor with..a large snow blower in the front in place of a loader. He saw me working on top of a hill and came by to offer help. Wow, the ultimate snow removal machine. Blew wads of snow a good 100 feet. Managed to clear the road out and make it passable by mid-day yesterday. Good thing, I was running low on diesel. I was drop dead exhausted, today is going to be my weekend. Bright sunny sky this AM, it was a $100 million snow for the area hay crop and winter wheat farmers.

Bill

[W3GMS]

Bill,
Glad things are improving and your going to have a chance to rest up a bit.  The winds makes life brutal when working outside. 

It sounds like you have a good neighbor.  Nice he stopped by to offer a lending hand.  I wish more folks would do that.  Last year I went to various neighbors with my snow blower to lend a hand. 

Joe, W3GMS

[WA3VJB]

I was drop dead exhausted, today is going to be my weekend.
Bill

Bill:  Take this advice immediately:
(images below)


That's where we were last night, and thinking about you as we watched news coverage of the Big Dig.
Whew.

[Bill, KD0HG]

Just shot this a few minutes ago, a good melting under the sun today. Looks like the Chisholm Trail, but at least we're not marooned..

Paul, why is the fire purple?

Bill

[flintstone mop]

Just shot this a few minutes ago, a good melting under the sun today. Looks like the Chisholm Trail, but at least we're not marooned..

Paul, why is the fire purple?

Bill

Bill, I think Paul is using those wimpy, non-impressive 3B28's in his fire place power supply.

[WA3VJB]

Bill I'm glad you're at least partially dug out, and I take it the power was not taken down by the storm.
You sure got a dump this time.

Paul, why is the fire purple?

Cheap cameraphone struggles to find "white balance."

Or maybe I tossed a little Potassium Permanganate & Gelatin into the fire to get it started, I forget.

Had it lit last night for the game too.  Here's a shot on different camera.

[W3GMS]

Just shot this a few minutes ago, a good melting under the sun today. Looks like the Chisholm Trail, but at least we're not marooned..

Paul, why is the fire purple?

Bill

Bill,
Looks like a great location for a 5 Tower Vertical array on 160M! 
73,
Joe, GMS

[The Slab Bacon]

Paul, why is the fire purple?
Bill

In posthumus support for the Baltimore Ravens   

[Bill, KD0HG]

I should have bet every penny I had on the Denver-Steelers game. Then I'd be retired by now.