Fozz

Yeah it's a torch at the 850 and surface level, esp east of the Blue Ridge. Probably more amped than the GGEM

Yeah some people were freaking out in the lead up to Feb 2010. It’s always going to happen somewhere.

ICON is over a foot of snow for the cities.

Just a little. But nice upslope for the mountains.

Nice to see you back in Maryland!

Probably. Those events are always tricky around our neck of the woods. Sometimes we score big, but usually it's better to be skeptical.

I’m undecided on whether to head to Timberline next weekend. I think this will be a great storm there, but if we get a big one in the cities then I want to be home for that and might opt for Whitetail or Liberty in the evenings.

I wish I was old enough to remember 1993 and 1996 better. I do vaguely remember the insane drifts from Jan 1996 but I was so young at the time. Feb 2010 was definitely the all-timer with the two back-to-back blizzards. Jan 2016 comes close. And then PDII and Dec 2009 and the whole 2013-14 winter.

It’s been a while since there was much to talk about here. As for the weekend storm I’m a bit cautious about the cities and close suburbs (though I hope I’m wrong!), but ski country seems to have a very good chance so I’m really looking forward to it.

Happy New Year!

March can still bring real snow. The massive -NAO and deep trough will happen in April.

A lot of old people say that it used to snow a lot more when they were kids. Makes sense, since they remember the 60s (plus 1958)

Right after winter 2001-02 (a very warm, snowless winter) when I was 12 years old, I wondered if it would ever snow again, or if global warming is taking that away. Turns out my fears were valid, but I was just a few decades too soon.

Looks about right, Maestro will love this

I think at some point the west will get a dry spell, and that will be our chance for some type of event. Because until there's a ridge out west that actually stays around, I'm not holding any hope for this area. Probably after Jan 20.

Maybe I'm mistaken but I thought 2001-02 was a really good winter in NC, especially because of a major storm in early January. I think Raleigh got like 10".

I hope it wasn't 2002-03 (though I think even they got a legit storm in mid January 03).

Yeah if this is the new normal, then it’s not worth being so invested in this hobby, at least for myself. And the fact that I don’t post here as much as I did in years past is probably a sign of moving on or at least divesting a bit in terms of time and emotions. I won’t be satisfied with single digit winters, but if that’s what we get then there are plenty of other worthwhile things to do, like swimming or hitting the gym or some other hobby or activity where you can control the outcome. And then for the real diehards there is the option of moving north to a place that gets hundreds of inches, like the infamous PhineasC.

Gotta love how 3 of the top winters and 3 of the bottom winters (snow-wise) were in our lifetimes (at least for those of us over 30).

This is just a really bad winter in the East. But it's been a great winter out west, with storm after storm burying the Rockies and the Sierra. Many, if not most of our great winters happen at their expense, where they have a massive ridge and end up snow-starved, so it seems this is one of those years where it is the other way around.

4 degrees

Down to 8. Wind chill -11. Coldest temp here in quite a while.

Too late. Just did. It’s the day after the new Avatar, right?

I wouldn’t call the heat island a death knell for snow, but it can make a difference in marginal and elevation-based events.

Frosty morning today. I miss the 00s, when half the time December 5 meant that we got a snowstorm.