Two significant waves of wintery weather are on the way to hit much of Colorado, with more than three feet of snow expected in the southwest part of the state through Thursday.

A first wave of snow will move into the state on Monday, stretching into the night. During this round of snowfall, the deepest totals are expected in the San Juans and in the Sangre de Cristo mountains. Highest snow totals during this 24-hour period will likely be around a foot to a foot-and-a-half.

See expected totals through Tuesday morning below:

A second, even more significant wave of snow will hit Tuesday through Wednesday night, prompting a winter storm watch that spans the lower half of the state.

This storm will likely boost snow totals in the San Juan Mountain Range to more than three feet this week.

The map below shows expected totals in this southern region through Thursday morning. Note the darker maroon color in the area around Wolf Creek Pass, indicating that up to 48 inches could fall on these peaks, with up to 36 inches of snow on the pass.

The OpenSnow.com report also aligns with these predictions, calling for up to 35 inches of snow at Wolf Creek Ski Area over the next five days. Other resorts in the southwest should anticipate 20-plus inches during this same period.

Travel will be difficult in the impacted areas over the next few days. Strong winds are also expected, which will likely limit visibility in a big way and could result in large snow drifts.

Some impacts may be seen along the Front Range, but the biggest impacts are expected in Southern Colorado, especially in the southwest.

Avalanche risk is expected to experience a big spike due to these storms. Proceed with caution. Read more about that here.

As this storm starts to hit, find region specific alerts and updates on the National Weather Service website.

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