Thousands of Americans have been placed on alert for hazardous winter weather conditions, with snow and ice to impact travel.

The first in a series of storms will bring rain and snow showers to Southern Colorado today and Friday, with another storm late this weekend.

The snow rumors notwithstanding, the Philadelphia region and most of the rest of the Northeast can pretty well rule out a white Thanksgiving, nor will Black Friday turn white.

The Sierra Nevada, including the Lake Tahoe region, has received heavy amounts of snowfall recently, the UC Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Laboratory reported. As of Thursday, Nov. 20, the laboratory at Donner Pass had received 11.6 inches of snow over the past seven days.

Philadelphia has been stuck in a snow drought, with four straight winters of below-average snowfall. But there is some hope for snow lovers this season.

Heading toward the end of November, there's still no snow in Denver, making it the latest first snow in the city's history.