Snow and rain in the weekend weather forecast for Denver, Colorado

DENVER – Happy Saturday! It's the last day of summer 2024 and Mother Nature has a big change in store for us as we prepare to welcome fall at 6:43 a.m. Sunday. Our weekend will be much cooler and there will be widespread rain and snow through tonight.

If you need to make outdoor plans, most of your Saturday will be fine. You'll notice cooler temperatures and it will be windy at times. Clouds will also increase from the southwest. We'll see rain and snow in western and southern Colorado by this afternoon. That moisture will spread into the central and eastern parts of the state by this evening.

The 9NEWS Weather Impact Team has declared a Weather Impact Day for tonight and tomorrow morning to raise awareness of this weather change. This storm will have the greatest impact on those planning overnight travel, especially through the north central mountains. Any evening or overnight plans in Denver will also be wet.

The National Weather Service has issued a winter weather advisory for the mountains of northern Colorado, effective from 6 p.m. tonight through noon Sunday. Some locations in the advisory area can expect snowfall of between 4 and 9 inches. Overnight traffic problems may occur at the top of the pass, especially on routes such as I-70, US 40 and US 285 outside of Denver.

In the foothills, it could be cold enough for a light rain/snow mix before sunrise Sunday. If accumulation does occur, it will be light and mostly confined to grassy or elevated areas.

As with most storms, we will see very variable rainfall amounts across the region. Realistically, we expect average rainfall amounts between 0.10 and 0.30 inches, but some areas could get a half-inch or more before it's all over tomorrow morning.

Sunday will be the coolest day of the week, with highs several degrees below normal in many locations. The day will start cloudy across the region, but it should clear up during the afternoon.

Sunshine and much warmer weather will return starting Monday. A fast-moving weather system could bring a little more rain and snow late Monday and Tuesday, but the chances of that are slim. We'll have a better idea once the current storm passes.

RADAR: Click/tap here for the interactive live radar

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SATURDAY: Sunny to start with, then cloudy with rain likely after 6pm, high 23°C. Cloudy overnight with persistent showers, low 7°C.

SUNDAY: Cloudy with lingering showers before 10am, then gradually clearing in the late afternoon and evening. High 58, low 43.

MONDAY: Sunny and mild with a few late showers, high 77. Mostly cloudy at night, low 48.

TUESDAY: Mostly cloudy with an early chance of rain, high 69. Partly cloudy at night, low 46.

WEDNESDAY: Mostly sunny and mild, high 78. Partly cloudy overnight, low 50.

THURSDAY: Mostly sunny and mild, high 81. Partly cloudy at night, low 50.

FRIDAY: Mostly sunny and mild, high 80. Partly cloudy at night, low 52.