Colorado, 2004

Heavy Snow in Colorado, December 21 to 22, 2004

December 21 to 22, 2004 · NWS PUB · 6 events in 6 counties and zones

heavy at times across sections of southern Colorado. and 12 inches at La Veta in Huerfano County and 10 miles southwest of Colorado Springs in El Paso County.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 6 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
6

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS PUB wrote it up.

A storm system deposited areas of snow...heavy at times across sections of southern Colorado. Some of the higher snow reports are as follows: 7 inches 8 miles west of Westcliffe in Custer County...9 inches at Trinidad...Black Forest and 3 miles west-southwest of downtown Colorado Springs...11 inches at Walsenburg in Huerfano County...and 12 inches at La Veta in Huerfano County and 10 miles southwest of Colorado Springs in El Paso County.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

6 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Northern Sangre de Cristo Mountains Between 8500 & 11000 Ft

When
December 21, 3:00 PM MST to December 22, 11:00 AM MST
Where
Northern Sangre de Cristo Mountains Between 8500 & 11000 Ft forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
37.992, -105.637 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Teller County / Rampart Range Above 7500 Ft / Pikes Peak Between 7500 & 11000 Ft

When
December 21, 3:00 PM MST to December 22, 11:00 AM MST
Where
Teller County / Rampart Range Above 7500 Ft / Pikes Peak Between 7500 & 11000 Ft forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
38.729, -105.043 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Northern El Paso County / Monument Ridge / Rampart Range Below 7500 Ft

When
December 21, 3:00 PM MST to December 22, 11:00 AM MST
Where
Northern El Paso County / Monument Ridge / Rampart Range Below 7500 Ft forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
38.832, -104.526 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Colorado Springs Vicinity / Southern El Paso County / Rampart Range Below 7500 Ft

When
December 21, 3:00 PM MST to December 22, 11:00 AM MST
Where
Colorado Springs Vicinity / Southern El Paso County / Rampart Range Below 7500 Ft forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
38.832, -104.526 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Walsenburg Vicinity / Upper Huerfano River Basin Below 7500 Ft

When
December 21, 3:00 PM MST to December 22, 11:00 AM MST
Where
Walsenburg Vicinity / Upper Huerfano River Basin Below 7500 Ft forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
37.685, -104.961 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Trinidad Vicinity / Lower Huerfano River Basin & Western Las Animas County Below 7500 Ft

When
December 21, 3:00 PM MST to December 22, 11:00 AM MST
Where
Trinidad Vicinity / Lower Huerfano River Basin & Western Las Animas County Below 7500 Ft forecast zone
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
37.316, -104.039 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Heavy Snow
Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Colorado in 2004Every state in 2004This day in weather historyWarnings in Colorado, December 2004

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5430750, 5430751, 5430752, 5430753, 5430754, 5430755.