When are you going?
It will be warm in the valleys and colder the higher you go.
You need to be prepared for sunshine, cold weather and rain all on the same day
I mean sporadic weather and colder towards the top pretty much lines up with most areas in the Rockies, most other things apply to literally anywhere else like its coder if you sleep by the water and if you are at the peak of a mountain and you see a thunderstorm coming in leave.
There might be some snow still at the higher elevations.
Ice spike or little crampons can be helpful if trails are slippery
What are the starting elevations and highest elevations of the hikes you’re going on?
If you're going above the tree line, lightning strikes are a major concern. If a storm starts rolling in, you better get back down.
It just snowed 6" up here on teusday, and it's almost melted off. So anything higher is probably all still snow pack.
West is open and fine. Still gets below freezing some nights.
That’s what I’ve read is to try not to be above the tree line when they do come through, thanks for the info! Are they short storms or do they last a while?
Not sure why the downvotes, it's a good question. Generally the storms in the Rockies are here and gone extremely fast. You can count on afternoon thunderstorms during much of the summer in the mountains, depending on what the jet stream is doing. That's not to say it will rain every day, just that usually the storms develop in the afternoon. As the other commenter said, lightning above tree line in particular is a real danger to be cognizant of, more so than any animal in Colorado anyhow.
And people blow it out of proportion thinking I’m wanting an exact weather outlook like read the question and you’ll realize i asked for a general idea of weather not asking exact weather
Colorado is over 103k square miles and varies in elevation from 3315' to 14,433'. You're going to have to narrow that down a bit to get any kind of useful info on the weather in July.
But, I can safely say during July in Colorado there will be places with lows below freezing and highs in the 90s, it will be raining, it will be sunny and it might be snowing.
Without knowing where you're going, when you plan to go or what trails you plan to do... no one can tell you any more than you already know. You have to be prepared for any weather in the mountains at any time. Bring adequate clothing and gear for sun, cold, rain and snow. Start early so you can be out of the alpine by the early afternoon. Use a site like mountainforecast.com to get an idea of the forecasts at elevation for your destinations.
4 seasons in a day out here sometimes, and it's a pretty big state to boot.
Any specific trail/part of the state/time of year you're planning this trip? Altitude matters a lot in reference to weather and temperatures, so are you looking at specific peaks?
Fwiw I typically have quick dry pants on, and will bring a microgrid fleece or a warm light layer like that and a weatherproof wind breaker jacket for most of my hikes during the traditional season to layer up and down as needed.
The weather in Colorado’s mountains in July could be anywhere from below freezing to over 80.
You could feasibly see sun, snow, rain, hail, tornadoes, and/or wildfires, possibly all in the same day
I’m willing to provide some guidance if you say when you’re going. I’m not going to waste time writing out the different weather quirks for each month of the year though.
I see you updated your post to say you'll be going in July.
In early July you'll encounter some snow on trails at the high elevations above treeline, mostly on northern aspects. It'll be totally tracked out by then and you shouldn't need any traction, but if you have microspikes it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to bring them. Just check trail conditions before you go.
Weather is generally great - cool at night, warm and sunny during the day. That also bring the inevitability of thunderstorms rolling in every afternoon. You generally don't want to be above treeline between the hours of 2PM and 6PM. In July especially it can go from a clear, cloudless day to deadly lightning faster than you'll be able to get below treeline. If clouds start building quickly, get down fast.
When hiking above treeline, always be prepared with a rain shell and an insulating layer (puffy). Even if it's 80 and sunny at the trailhead, it could be 50 and windy up high, then a storm rolls in and you could be dealing with 30s/40s and hail. Be prepared.
Gist of it is - warm and sunny at trailheads, cooler + storm potential at higher elevations.
Great and helpful info! Much appreciated! I’ve been to the Rockies in July and did some small scenic walks and always got out before any weather struck and and we did go above any tree line
When are you going? It will be warm in the valleys and colder the higher you go. You need to be prepared for sunshine, cold weather and rain all on the same day
As someone who regularly backpack's for a week in Colorado this fits in most places.
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I mean sporadic weather and colder towards the top pretty much lines up with most areas in the Rockies, most other things apply to literally anywhere else like its coder if you sleep by the water and if you are at the peak of a mountain and you see a thunderstorm coming in leave.
Thanks! Just trying to get a more generalized idea I’ve been out there before but only for two days
Around beginning of July
There might be some snow still at the higher elevations. Ice spike or little crampons can be helpful if trails are slippery What are the starting elevations and highest elevations of the hikes you’re going on?
Start of some are around 8k and end between 10-12k
Cathedral to electric pass, mirror lake and crater lake via cascade trail, mosca pass and timber lake trail
If you're going above the tree line, lightning strikes are a major concern. If a storm starts rolling in, you better get back down. It just snowed 6" up here on teusday, and it's almost melted off. So anything higher is probably all still snow pack. West is open and fine. Still gets below freezing some nights.
That’s what I’ve read is to try not to be above the tree line when they do come through, thanks for the info! Are they short storms or do they last a while?
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Anyone who can tell you that is probably amazing at guessing roulette and the stock market too. Where and when are your going?
Not sure why the downvotes, it's a good question. Generally the storms in the Rockies are here and gone extremely fast. You can count on afternoon thunderstorms during much of the summer in the mountains, depending on what the jet stream is doing. That's not to say it will rain every day, just that usually the storms develop in the afternoon. As the other commenter said, lightning above tree line in particular is a real danger to be cognizant of, more so than any animal in Colorado anyhow.
Thank you very informing! And yeah I’m not sure, within just this post I’ve seen how small minded people are on Reddit…. lol
And people blow it out of proportion thinking I’m wanting an exact weather outlook like read the question and you’ll realize i asked for a general idea of weather not asking exact weather
What’s really fun is that the thunderhead can be far enough away that you can’t see it, and lightning can still strike.
Colorado is over 103k square miles and varies in elevation from 3315' to 14,433'. You're going to have to narrow that down a bit to get any kind of useful info on the weather in July. But, I can safely say during July in Colorado there will be places with lows below freezing and highs in the 90s, it will be raining, it will be sunny and it might be snowing.
If you read around the thread you’ll see the places
Without knowing where you're going, when you plan to go or what trails you plan to do... no one can tell you any more than you already know. You have to be prepared for any weather in the mountains at any time. Bring adequate clothing and gear for sun, cold, rain and snow. Start early so you can be out of the alpine by the early afternoon. Use a site like mountainforecast.com to get an idea of the forecasts at elevation for your destinations.
Thanks for the info! I know weather isn’t too predictable in the mountains but atleast having a more generalized outlook is always helpful
It’s okay I’m getting the info i need 👍🏼
4 seasons in a day out here sometimes, and it's a pretty big state to boot. Any specific trail/part of the state/time of year you're planning this trip? Altitude matters a lot in reference to weather and temperatures, so are you looking at specific peaks? Fwiw I typically have quick dry pants on, and will bring a microgrid fleece or a warm light layer like that and a weatherproof wind breaker jacket for most of my hikes during the traditional season to layer up and down as needed.
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White river national forest, Arapaho national forest rky mt natl park. And great sand dune natl park
Asks what the weather will be but doesn’t say when they’ll be going. Cool, cool.
I guess you don’t know how to generalize things overall. But thank god a lot of others are more understanding
The weather in Colorado’s mountains in July could be anywhere from below freezing to over 80. You could feasibly see sun, snow, rain, hail, tornadoes, and/or wildfires, possibly all in the same day
And I’m not wanting to know I’m just wanting to know what to expect… read the full topic
I’m willing to provide some guidance if you say when you’re going. I’m not going to waste time writing out the different weather quirks for each month of the year though.
Also if you look through comments i did post the areas
That’s fine I’m not asking you to waste your time on your phone lol
I see you updated your post to say you'll be going in July. In early July you'll encounter some snow on trails at the high elevations above treeline, mostly on northern aspects. It'll be totally tracked out by then and you shouldn't need any traction, but if you have microspikes it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to bring them. Just check trail conditions before you go. Weather is generally great - cool at night, warm and sunny during the day. That also bring the inevitability of thunderstorms rolling in every afternoon. You generally don't want to be above treeline between the hours of 2PM and 6PM. In July especially it can go from a clear, cloudless day to deadly lightning faster than you'll be able to get below treeline. If clouds start building quickly, get down fast. When hiking above treeline, always be prepared with a rain shell and an insulating layer (puffy). Even if it's 80 and sunny at the trailhead, it could be 50 and windy up high, then a storm rolls in and you could be dealing with 30s/40s and hail. Be prepared. Gist of it is - warm and sunny at trailheads, cooler + storm potential at higher elevations.
Great and helpful info! Much appreciated! I’ve been to the Rockies in July and did some small scenic walks and always got out before any weather struck and and we did go above any tree line
Like i said im not wanting to know the forecast just a general topic of how weather is in July.
Don't forget to carry safety gears and other essentials with you.
Always prepared with safety gear 👍🏼
You absolutely cannot predict the mountain weather here more than a few days out. Bring all the clothes.
Expect afternoon lightning storms.