Colorado ยท season guide
Sledding season in Colorado Springs
NOAA's 1991 to 2020 climate normals for the Colorado Springs Muni Airport weather station, about 10 miles from the middle of our Colorado Springs hill list show October as the first month that averages an inch of snow or more (2.5 inches). The normals are monthly averages, so they can't give a first-snow date. Some years come early, some late.
October snow is part of the record here: the normal for that month is 2.5 inches.
Unusually, March (5.7 inches) averages more snow than December (4.1 inches), so the season runs late.
Across a normal year the station records about 32.5 inches of snow. That puts Colorado Springs at 73 of 98 metros on this site, ranked from snowiest down.
About 23 days a year have an inch or more of snow on the ground.
For comparison, Denver, the nearest metro on our list, averages 49 inches, more than here.
1 of the 6 hills we list here come from a city, county or park district page.
Month by month
| Month | Average snowfall | Days with 1 inch or more of new snow | Days with 1 inch or more on the ground |
|---|---|---|---|
| October | 2.5 inches | 0.9 | 0.9 |
| November | 4.4 inches | 1.3 | 3.3 |
| December | 4.1 inches | 1.6 | 4.5 |
| January | 4.9 inches | 1.8 | 4.4 |
| February | 4.6 inches | 1.5 | 4.4 |
| March | 5.7 inches | 1.9 | 3.0 |
| April | 5.5 inches | 1.7 | 1.8 |
Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, station USW00093037. "Not stated by source" means NOAA publishes no value for that station.
Lit hills
None of the sources we used for Colorado Springs mention lights on a sledding hill. Plan on daylight, and see our national lit hills list if you're travelling.
Local rules
We didn't find a city-wide sledding rule for Colorado Springs in the sources we checked. Individual parks may post their own signs, and those win.
Short answers
When does it usually start snowing in Colorado Springs?
In NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals for the Colorado Springs Muni Airport station, October is the first month averaging an inch of snow or more. The normals are monthly averages, not a date.
How much snow does Colorado Springs get in a year?
About 32.5 inches a year at the Colorado Springs Muni Airport station, per NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals.
Are there lit sledding hills in Colorado Springs?
None of the sources we used mention lights. Plan on daylight.
Updated