If you’ve lived at the base of the Wasatch Front for more than a week, you know the drill. You look at the draper 10 day forecast, see a icon of a sun, and walk out the door in a light jacket only to get slapped in the face by a canyon wind that feels like it’s coming straight off a glacier.
Honestly, Draper weather is its own beast. Because we’re tucked right where the Traverse Ridge meets the valley floor, the air does things here it doesn’t do in Salt Lake or Provo. It’s basically a microclimate.
The Breakdown: January 16 through January 25
We are looking at a classic mid-winter stretch. No major "Snowmageddon" events on the immediate horizon, but it’s definitely staying crisp.
Friday, January 16: It’s a bit of a mixed bag today. We’re sitting at a high of 38°F with partly sunny skies. There’s a tiny 5% chance of some flakes during the day, bumping up to 10% tonight. If you’re heading out, that 22°F low tonight is going to bite.
The Sunny Stretch (Jan 17 - Jan 20):
Saturday and Sunday are looking like the winners of the week. We’re hitting 39°F on Saturday and 38°F on Sunday. Pure sunshine. It’s that deceptive Utah winter sun where it looks like it’s 60 degrees through the window, but the air is still hovering just above freezing. Monday stays clear with a high of 36°F, and Tuesday edges back up to 39°F.
The Mid-Week Shift:
By Wednesday, January 21, things start to soften up a little. We hit 40°F—the high point of the next few days. It'll be mostly sunny, but clouds start rolling in by evening.
Late Week Fluctuations:
- Thursday (Jan 22): A high of 39°F. We’ve got a 20% chance of snow during the day.
- Friday (Jan 23): Mostly cloudy, high of 38°F.
- Saturday (Jan 24): Back to partly sunny, high of 39°F.
- Sunday (Jan 25): We might see a little "warmth" (comparatively) at 42°F, but it comes with a 20% chance of rain at night.
Why the Forecast Isn't the Full Story
The temperature is one thing, but the humidity and wind are what actually dictate your life in Draper. Today, for instance, we’re looking at 74% humidity. In the summer, that’s nothing, but in January at 28°F, it makes the cold feel "wet." It gets into your bones.
And then there's the wind. Right now, it's a whisper at 2 mph from the north. But by this afternoon, we’re expecting a slight uptick to 7 mph. In a place like the Corner Canyon area, that 7 mph can feel a lot stronger when it’s funneled through the gaps.
What This Means for Your Weekend
If you were planning on hitting the trails or taking the kids to the Loveland Living Planet Aquarium, Saturday is your best bet for outdoor transit. Clear skies and 5 mph winds mean the wind chill won't be a total dealbreaker.
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Basically, the draper 10 day forecast is telling us to stay prepared for "dry cold." We aren't seeing the massive 12-inch dumps of snow this week, but the overnight lows are consistently in the low 20s. That means ice on the windshield every single morning.
Actionable Advice for the Week Ahead
- Check your tire pressure: These 20-degree drops at night are notorious for triggering that annoying "low air" light on your dashboard.
- Morning commute: Even with a 0% precipitation forecast for Saturday and Sunday, watch for black ice in the shadows of the mountains where the sun doesn't hit until noon.
- Layering: Since we’re seeing a nearly 20-degree swing between the daily high and nightly low, don't trust the afternoon sun. Keep the heavy coat in the car.
Keep an eye on the sky toward next Sunday, the 25th. That shift to 42°F with rain suggests the high-pressure system might be breaking down, which usually means more volatile weather is right around the corner.