Colorado’s snowpack remains at unusually high levels, and with spring quickly turning into summer, it could have big impacts on outdoors enthusiasts’ plans.

As of Monday, statewide snowpack remained at an extraordinary 155 percent of season-to-date levels. In parts of southwest Colorado, snowpack is over 200 percent of average — meaning snow levels there are more than twice what they typically are at this point of the season.

The median snow water equivalent level, meaning a measure of how much water remains in the snow, is at 162 percent of average. That’s enough snow to put current levels in the 86th percentile of the 1981-2010 average, and the highest statewide levels overall since 2011.

While the snow will begin its rapid melt in the next few weeks, snowpack levels this high will likely take several weeks, if not months, to entirely melt. In previous years with similar snowpack levels, the snow has typically stuck around deep into the summer season.

Based on the 1981-2010 average, full snowpack in Colorado melts off approximately by the mid-to-end part of June. In years with similar snowpack levels, though, that figure can be delayed by as much as a full month.

Here are the approximate dates of similar snowpack years and roughly how long it took for the snowpack to fully melt off:

1984: July 12

1993: July 12

1995: July 20

1997: July 14

2011: July 20

All these numbers are estimates, but the conclusions are clear: When mid-May snowpack levels are as high as they currently are, the full melting of the state’s snow is typically delayed by about three to four weeks.

Once the snow finally does melt off, however, the so-called mud season will begin. Slick trails and softer ground could impact hikes, especially those in higher elevations or north-facing slopes that may take longer to melt.

For high elevation hikers in particular, things could be a bit more challenging, especially during the earlier portion of the summer season. Most of Colorado’s 53 fourteeners remain covered in several feet of snow, according to recent reports from popular hiking website 14ers.com. That fact is unlikely to change anytime soon.

That said, hikers and outdoors enthusiasts will also feel plenty of positive implications from Colorado’s big winter. Perhaps most notably, burn bans will be less likely and wildfire risk will probably be greatly reduced due to the amount of moisture that Colorado received through most of the winter. Whitewater rafters will have plenty of fast-flowing water to navigate rapids with. Hikers may notice generally greener landscapes and increased vegetation.

But this winter’s snow will likely stick around deep into summer, and that’ll inevitably make early season high elevation hikes challenging, if not impossible, without proper equipment.

A warmer-than-average week ahead will help begin the lengthy process of melting off all the snow left in the state. But even if the rest of May and June lean warm, you’re probably best off delaying fourteeners and any high elevation adventures towards the end of the summer season.

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