This time of year, Interstate 70 through Colorado’s mountains is usually slick, snowy, and packed with travelers heading to ski resorts. But on Christmas Eve, the road to the high country was sunny, dry, and noticeably quieter.

In downtown Idaho Springs, the mild December weather has meant fewer visitors stopping to eat, shop, and walk around town, and businesses are feeling it.

“It’s a lot more fun when it’s snowy,” one resident said. “People keep saying the weather is amazing, and I’m like, ‘no… I’m ready for snow,’” said resident Katie Baker.

At Westbound Bar & Grill, bar manager Carrie Doyle said Christmas week is typically one of their biggest of the year. Instead, the restaurant sat nearly empty.

“Usually we have skiers and snowboarders coming through, meeting family here before heading up the hill,” Doyle said. “If you don’t have people, you don’t have income.”

A few doors down, Tibetan Sisters Art owner Paulden Hester said business has been slow, especially after last week’s power outage.

“Overall, business is down,” Hester said. “Hopefully that will change.”

At the Majestic Art Gallery, artist Mimsi Milton remembered last Christmas, when 125 customers packed the shop. This year, she said, “it’s very slow.”

CBS Colorado First Alert meteorologists say warm and dry stretches in December aren’t unusual when high pressure sits over the region, but this year, strong downslope winds amplified the warmth even more.

Mountain snow is expected to return this weekend, something Idaho Springs businesses are counting on.

GOODING, Idaho (KMVT/KSVT) — A Gooding woman died on Tuesday evening after a three-vehicle crash on Idaho Route 46.

The crash occurred at 5:45 p.m. at milepost 107, approximately 5 miles south of Gooding, according to Idaho State Police.

A juvenile heading northbound in a pickup truck crossed into oncoming traffic. The pickup sideswiped a maroon SUV driven by a 28-year-old woman from Hailey. The pickup then crashed head-on into a mid-size sedan, driven by a 25-year-old woman from Gooding and carrying a juvenile passenger.

The crash killed the Gooding woman, who died from injuries at the scene of the crash, according to ISP. She was not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash.

Both juveniles and the Hailey woman were taken to the hospital, with the juveniles airlifted.

The crash blocked the highway for three hours. Law enforcement on scene diverted northbound traffic onto East 2300 South and diverted southbound traffic onto East 2100 South.

Idaho State Police is investigating the crash. The Gooding County Sheriff’s Office, Life Flight, Gooding Fire and Gooding Ambulance assisted troopers on scene.

Friends and family have created a gofundme account to help support her children.

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BOISE, Idaho — While some have resigned themselves to a rainy forecast this week across the Treasure Valley, some optimistic Idahoans are still holding out hope for the unlikely— the City of Boise blanketed in snow on Christmas morning.

While those wishes may (or may not) be answered this year, it’s worth noting that a White Christmas in Boise is not as common as some may think.

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The National Weather Service in Boise just took a look back at the last 70 years to see how often the valley has been blessed with snowfall on Dec. 25.

Based on that data, the City of Boise averages a 25% chance of a White Christmas each year. The last time Boise had a White Christmas was in 2022.

The last time there was over 3 inches of snow on the ground on Christmas was 2017.