Intermountain West Dashboard
Western Water Assessment needs your help improving the Intermountain West Dashboard! Please share your input in this short, anonymous survey which should take less than 5 minutes to complete.
The Intermountain West Dashboard provides situational awareness of weather, drought, and water resources for Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming.
Click the question mark icon above each graphic to see the description of that graphic.
Weekly or monthly summaries of evolving weather, drought, and water conditions for the Intermountain West are also available from these providers:
- Colorado CC/NIDIS Intermountain West Drought Status Briefings
- NOAA CBRFC Water Supply Briefings for the Colorado River Basin and Great Basin - monthly, January through May
- NRCS Water Supply Outlook Reports for Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming - monthly, January through May/June
Temperature, Precipitation and Snowpack
Drought Conditions
Current Streamflow, Forecasted Streamflow
Soil Moisture
Reservoir Storage
Precipitation Forecast
Seasonal Climate Outlooks
ENSO Conditions and Forecasts
Latest Briefing
November 10, 2025 - CO, UT, WY
Much of the region received above average October precipitation, except for eastern Colorado and southeastern Wyoming where below average precipitation fell. October temperatures were near to above normal throughout the region. Regional snow-water equivalent (SWE) was variable, with statewide SWE levels at 0.3 inches in Colorado, 0.3 inches in Utah, and 0.9 inches in Wyoming as of November 1. By the end of October, regional drought coverage was 51%, a 10% improvement since the end of September. Streamflow conditions were generally near normal in Colorado and Wyoming, and below normal in Utah, with the highest streamflow conditions seen in southwestern Colorado. La Niña conditions continued during October and will likely shift to ENSO-neutral conditions by late winter. The NOAA seasonal outlook for November-January suggests an increased probability of above average precipitation for northern Wyoming, and above average temperatures in Colorado, Utah, and southern Wyoming.
Utah, most of Wyoming, and western Colorado received above to much above average precipitation during October. Large areas of the region received 150-200% of normal precipitation, with some locations in northern Utah, southeastern Utah, northern Wyoming, and southwestern Colorado receiving 200-400% of normal precipitation. One pocket of 400-800% of normal precipitation was observed in Big Horn County in northern Wyoming. A rainfall event in Salt Lake City, UT on October 4 nearly broke the all-time daily rainfall record of 2.64” when 2.47” fell. In contrast, the majority of eastern Colorado experienced 25-50% of normal precipitation, with a swath of 5-25% of normal precipitation along the Front Range and eastern slope, from Weld County in the north to Las Animas County in the south. One pocket of 2% or less of normal precipitation occurred in Pueblo County in southern Colorado.
Regional temperatures were near to above normal in October. Temperatures were 2-4°F above normal throughout most of Colorado, Wyoming, and eastern Utah, with scattered pockets of 4-6°F above normal temperatures throughout. A swath of 4-6°F above normal temperatures occurred in southeastern Colorado, with a pocket of 6-8°F above normal temperatures in Cheyenne and Kiowa Counties. The majority of western Utah experienced near normal temperatures.
As of November 1, snow-water equivalent (SWE) was variable across the region. SWE was much below normal for Colorado, from 46% of normal SWE in the Upper Colorado-Dolores basin to as low as 24% of normal SWE in the Upper San Juan basin. SWE was much above normal in the Cheyenne (167%) and Belle Fourche (167%) basins in Wyoming. Basins with above normal SWE include the Powder (132%) in Wyoming, and the Lower Colorado-Lake Mead (127%) and Lower Bear (121%) in Utah. Basins with below normal SWE include the Tongue (63%) and North Platte (51%) in Wyoming, and the Escalante Desert-Sevier Lake (69%) and Upper Colorado-Dirty Devil (50%) in Utah. Statewide SWE levels are 0.3 inches in Colorado, 0.3 inches in Utah, and 0.9 inches in Wyoming.
Note: Current SWE as a percent of normal maps are often skewed at this time of year due to the very low average SWE this early in the season.
Regional drought conditions significantly improved during October. By October 28, regional drought coverage was 51%, a 10% improvement since the end of September. Moderate (D1) drought coverage decreased by 16% in Colorado, 6% in Utah, and 6% in Wyoming. Severe (D2) drought coverage decreased by 22% in Colorado, 32% in Utah, and 5% in Wyoming. Extreme (D3) drought coverage decreased by 13% in Colorado, 10% in Utah, and 8% in Wyoming. The most significant improvement in drought conditions occurred in southwestern Colorado, with a 2 to 3 class improvement.
Regional streamflow conditions were generally near normal in Colorado and Wyoming, and below normal in Utah. Much below normal streamflow conditions occurred in the North Fork Gunnison River basin in western Colorado, the Hamlin-Snake Valleys River basin in western Utah, and the Madison River basin in northwestern Wyoming. However, some regional basins experienced above to much above normal streamflow conditions, particularly in southwestern Colorado and southeastern Utah. Much above normal streamflow conditions occurred in the San Miguel, Animas, and Upper San Juan River basins in southwestern Colorado, the Lower San Juan-Four Corners River basin in southeastern Utah and Raft River basin in northern Utah, and the Angostura Reservoir region of the Cheyenne River basin in eastern Wyoming. The Piedra River basin in southwestern Colorado experienced streamflow conditions in the highest percentile.
La Niña conditions continued in October and are expected to persist through early winter, followed by a 55% probability of returning to ENSO-neutral conditions by late winter. The NOAA Monthly Precipitation Outlook suggests an increased probability of below average precipitation for Colorado, Utah, and southern Wyoming in November. The NOAA Monthly Temperature Outlook suggests an increased probability of above average temperatures for the entire region in November. The NOAA Seasonal Precipitation Outlook for November-January suggests an increased probability of above average precipitation in northern Wyoming and part of northern Utah, and below average precipitation in southwestern Colorado and southeastern Utah. The NOAA Seasonal Temperature Outlook for November-January suggests an increased probability of above average temperatures in Colorado, Utah, and southern Wyoming.
Significant weather event: Flooding in southwestern Colorado. WWA produced a rapid assessment of the flooding in southwestern Colorado from October 10th-14th to serve as a scientific resource for understanding the drivers and impacts of the flooding events. The report is designed to support local resilience-building efforts and hazard planning for communities in the region. It provides the long-term and recent historical context for the flooding, hydrologic characteristics of the flood event, and an assessment of the local probability of an event of this magnitude.
Key Findings:
- The October 10th-14th, 2025 floods were the 3rd largest on record for Pagosa Springs, CO, with river levels reaching a maximum gauge height of 12.82 feet and peak flow rates of 8,570 cubic feet per second.
- A total of 12.5 inches of precipitation fell at a high-elevation observation site in the watershed over 5 days, saturating the watershed and driving the river to reach Major Flood stage twice in that period.
- Flood frequency analysis based on historical observations of runoff in Pagosa Springs suggests this flood has a return period of 25 to 40 years, meaning that there is a 2.5-4% likelihood of a flood of similar magnitude occurring in any given year.
- Early reports following the flooding suggest that hundreds of residents and households were evacuated in Pagosa Springs and surrounding rural communities and many structures were damaged or destroyed by the floods including homes, bridges, and roadways.
- Nearly two decades of exposure to drought conditions, increasing wildfire activity, and now the recent flooding collectively highlight the geographically unique and increasingly frequent natural hazard risks that rural mountain communities face in southwest Colorado.
Learn more: https://wwa.colorado.edu/resources/hazard-assessments
Water Year 2025 Summary
Precipitation during the 2025 water year was below average for all regional river basins west of the Continental Divide and precipitation generally ranged from 80-90% of average, except for the Lower San Juan basin which received 68% of average precipitation. Most river basins east of the Continental Divide received near average precipitation (Arkansas, Big Horn, North/South Platte, Powder and Yellowstone). The Belle Fouche and Cheyenne River basins in northeastern Wyoming received above average precipitation during 2025.
Temperatures were above average during the 2025 water year. The warmest temperatures were observed in Utah, western Colorado and southern Wyoming, where temperatures were generally 2-3 degrees above average. Temperatures were slightly above average (1-2 degrees) across much of Wyoming and central Colorado while eastern Colorado and northeastern Wyoming experienced near average water year temperatures.
Near average snow water equivalent (SWE) conditions were observed on April 1st for much of the northern portion of the region, while below to much below April 1st SWE conditions were observed in the southern portion of the region. April 1st SWE was near average in the Green, North/South Platte, Yampa-White, Colorado Headwaters, Bear, Jordan and Weber River Basins. Much below average SWE conditions were observed in the Dolores, Dirty Devil, San Juan and Rio Grande River Basins. Upper Colorado River Basin (UCRB) April 1st SWE was 87% average. Snowpack generally peaked in late March with a secondary, lower peak during early April and snowmelt occurred only slightly earlier than average except in the San Juan basin where snowmelt occurred nearly 2 weeks early.
Despite near average SWE conditions for many regional river basins, especially in the North, observed April–July streamflow volume was much below normal for all river basins. In general, streamflow forecasts worsened throughout the winter and during snowmelt. Observed inflow to Lake Powell was 41% of average; a particularly disappointing result considering April 1st SWE was 87% of average. Observed April-July streamflow in the Cheyenne, Lower Green, North Platte and White-Yampa was less than 60% of average despite near to above average snowpack. Every regional river basin experienced an inefficient runoff, where runoff was relatively low compared to snowpack. The poor runoff season can be partly attributed to lack of precipitation (in the South), early onset of snowmelt and extremely dry soils.
Drought conditions expanded significantly during the 2025 water year. The most significant change occurred in the Upper Colorado River Basin, where drought coverage of only 7% of the basin at the start of the water year expanded to 100% of the basin by the end of September 2025. Regionally, 36% of the region was in drought in October 2024; by late September 2025, 63% of the region was in drought, including 15% coverage by extreme drought which is mostly present in the Upper Colorado River Basin. Large areas of the Upper Colorado River Basin, predominantly in western Colorado, eastern Utah and southwestern Wyoming, experience a 3 to 4 category degradation in drought.
Surface soil moisture conditions were extremely poor at the start of the 2025 water year, with many areas experiencing soil moisture conditions in the less than two percentile range. After an extremely dry summer, surface soil moisture conditions improved during September across much of the region, with large areas of near average surface soil moisture and the area of low soil moisture anomalies was greatly reduced. Wetter soils near the surface may foretell the possibility of a better runoff season, however, the shallow groundwater drought index illustrates much drier conditions to end the 2025 water year. Much of southern Utah and western Colorado are experiencing exceptional shallow groundwater drought conditions.
Water storage in nearly all regional reservoirs declined during the 2025 water year. In general, reservoir storage is lowest in Colorado (49% of capacity) and highest in Utah (74% of capacity), with the greatest decreases in reservoir storage during 2025 occurring in Colorado. Many reservoirs in Utah remain at or well above median storage capacity, which is largely due to the lingering effects of the record 2023 water year in Utah. In general, reservoirs on the Upper Colorado River such as Blue Mesa, McPhee, Navajo, and Lake Powell have the lowest capacities. Water levels in Flaming Gorge Reservoir remain relatively high at 84% (94% of median capacity), however, extremely low water in Lake Powell means that additional releases from Flaming Gorge and perhaps other reservoirs will be needed to maintain electrical power generation at Glen Canyon Dam. Reservoirs on the Wasatch Front and in the Uinta Basin remain relatively full.
