Weeks after most of Colorado’s ski resorts shut down for the spring, a late-season snowstorm is expected to drop more than two feet of snow across the Rocky Mountains this week. Snow this time of year is not unusual for the region, but it is unusual for this year, after a prolonged snow drought and record heat in March all but eliminated the critical snowpack across much of the American West. As of late last week, nearly 60 percent of Colorado was in an “extreme” or “exceptional” drought, according to the U.S. drought monitor. “In terms of the liquid content, this will certainly be one of the bigger storms” the region has had this year, said Russell Danielson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Boulder.

Other Colorado snow news:

• The Denver Post (Colo.): Colorado weather: 4 to 8 inches of snow forecast for Denver area
• The Coloradoan (Fort Collins): Winter returns with storm that could bring feet of snow to mountains
• The Washington Post: These cities waited for snow all winter. Now several inches will fall in May.
• The Land Desk: Blog: MAYDAY! Snowpack report