The Vail Valley is unlikely to see smoke from devastating Los Angeles wildfires — at least for now

The Vail Valley and Colorado’s Western Slope often see smoke from wildfires elsewhere in the Western United States. That won’t be the case with the devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area, at least for now.

Dave Byers, a forecaster at the Grand Junction office of the National Weather Service, said the prevailing winds into the northern and central Rockies are coming from the Pacific Northwest right now. That means the smoke from the Southern California fires will stay to the south of us, at least through the weekend.

Winds starting Jan. 13 will come off the Pacific Ocean roughly from Northern California.

Those winds are predicted to bring snow to Vail through the weekend into Monday. The forecast calls for “heavy snow” Saturday, with Byers saying that day is likely to be the “height” of poor driving conditions along the Interstate 70 corridor.

The forecast calls for snow showers and cold temperatures Sunday and Monday, with skies clearing and daytime temperatures heading into the 30s starting Tuesday, Jan. 14.

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It’s been a snowy start to the year so far. As of Friday morning, Vail Mountain reported 19 inches of snow over the past seven days and 139 inches for the season so far.