(SOUTHERN COLORADO) — Winter weather made its return on Wednesday, Dec. 13 as we near the halfway mark of December. The first official day of Winter kicks off next Thursday, Dec. 21.

Temperatures will fluctuate in and around the freezing mark, making for a day full of a variety of precipitation, especially out east.

The main highlights of this system are as follows:

Winter weather advisories & warnings

Slick road conditions

Light ice accumulations are possible

Rain/Snow/Ice mix for some

Reduced visibility

Heavy snow bands are possible

Currently, the track of the system is putting a bigger bullseye on the southern half of the viewing area where winter storm warnings are in place. Weather model runs from Wednesday morning have indicated that the system will likely push a little bit further north than what previous model runs had predicted. This means that winter weather advisories have been put in place for the northern half of the viewing area.

The timing of this system will be from Wednesday through Thursday, Dec. 14. Models are hinting at a couple of different waves of snowfall, and some of those waves may bring moderate to heavy snowfall rates to the area.

Numbers have been bumped up just a bit to adjust for multiple rounds of snow and higher amounts of moisture for the system to work with.

Here is what our current thinking is for forecasted snowfall:

Snow amounts will be just a bit trickier to nail down in and around Baca and Prowers counties because folks out that direction will likely see a good amount of freezing rain/ice before it turns to all snow.

Models are continuing to paint a pretty icy picture out east where a rain/snow/ice mix will take over for the first half of the day. Snow will be likely in and around the I-25 corridor from Monument to Trinidad.

Here’s a look at what Storm-Cast is thinking:

Travel impacts look to be rather high for everyone across the viewing area from Wednesday through Thursday as this storm system evolves. The greatest impacts will likely be felt during the late afternoon hours and beyond for much of El Paso County.

Regardless of the total snow amounts expected, be prepared for particularly difficult travel with this system. Significantly reduced visibility and snow-covered roads will make for some dangerous conditions.

Our weather will slowly improve by the second half of Thursday.