Denver overdue for first freeze, but it may happen this week

It’s been a long goodbye to summer on the Front Range. Denver should hit about 80 degrees again Tuesday, October 12, and plenty of people are still wearing shorts. Enjoy it while you can. A cold front moving in midweek could bring the season’s first frost or freeze by the end of the week.

The cold front arrives Wednesday with showers and a big drop in temperature. Highs should stay in the mid-40s to mid-50s from Wednesday through Friday, which is a shock after weeks of near-summer weather. The National Weather Service in Boulder says a frost or freeze is “becoming increasingly likely” on the plains Friday morning, with lows in the 30s. There could be another round Friday night into Saturday morning. The mountains could get their first real snow of the season, which is good news for anyone counting down to ski season.

Denver is overdue. The city’s average first freeze is Oct. 7, so we’re already about a week late. Colorado Springs, whose average first freeze is around Oct. 2, could see a low near 33 degrees Saturday morning. Last year, the Springs didn’t freeze until Oct. 19, when it dropped to 27 degrees.

If you still have tomatoes on the vine, now’s the time to pick them or cover them. Before you go to bed Thursday night, throw an old sheet over your garden, bring potted plants inside, and unhook your garden hoses so the spigots don’t freeze. If you haven’t blown out your sprinklers yet, this is your reminder. Don’t put the shorts away for good, though. The forecast warms back up to the upper 60s by Saturday afternoon, because it wouldn’t be Colorado otherwise.