A winter storm system that blasted parts of the western United States could make holiday travel more difficult.
    
Texas, Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma and New Mexico are all digging out from blizzard-like conditions Wednesday.

"It went from rain to sleet to snow. And by the time we hit Kansas it was really crazy," stranded driver Wendy Peeples said.

"I slid off in the median, was there for several hours," she recalled. "(It) took me three hours to get 30 miles."

The system is now heading east, giving road crews a chance to plow away snow and rescue stranded drivers.

The Texas Panhandle's Interstate 40 has been reopened as well as portions of Interstate 70 in western Kansas.
   
Forecasters said much of the snow will become rain, creating slushy roads and headaches for those driving to their holiday destinations.