NNE slowly approaching winter

[MaineJayhawk]

Sweet.

Yeah, it was considering I wasn't expecting diddly. Here's the best pic I took (it sucks) but it gives an idea about visibility. The road curves a couple hundred yards ahead.

[VtWeatherWatcher]

I’m not sure exactly when it fell, but as of 3:45 P.M. we’d picked up 0.6 inches of snow at the house.

imby started around noon and stopped at 3ish. Finally feels like winter around here, snow stuck to everything that was was thawing out from the glaze yesterday. Even saw a few plow trucks.

[CoastalWx]

Yeah, it was considering I wasn't expecting diddly. Here's the best pic I took (it sucks) but it gives an idea about visibility. The road curves a couple hundred yards ahead.

It actually looked fairly impressive for ctrl/wrn Maine and northern NH. My friend and I at work were commenting on it yesterday. Good height falls and strong vort max accompanying the front moving se. It did look like srn Maine and srn NH might get some action, and sure enough they did.

[dryslot]

It actually looked fairly impressive for ctrl/wrn Maine and northern NH. My friend and I at work were commenting on it yesterday. Good height falls and strong vort max accompanying the front moving se. It did look like srn Maine and srn NH might get some action, and sure enough they did.

We got hit with the 1st squall line but it was drying up as it was moving east, RH was in the 30's so we wasted a lot of moisture getting the air saturated, But we had +SN for about 10 mins so i will have to add trace amounts for the day.........

[klw]

We ended up with a little over an inch here and a bit more on some of the higher hills in town. I was driving around as the squalls hit and the visability was uner 100 yards at times.

[klw]

We're getting a nice steady flurry at the moment. We will probably get an inch or two tonight. This is based on the fact this is Peacham and we always seem to get an inch or two the night after a storm. (Well most nights in D-J-F for that matter)

[mahk_webstah]

We ended up with 3 squalls going through with about 3/4" of snow total. Still ice/sleet coating below it in shaded areas.

Did about the same amount here at 670ft. I missed it though....down in Manchester shopping, driving up 93 and hit Concord and it was wet and then wtf? snow on the ground. Some still on the roads up by my way as I drove home around 6,

[Bigbob]

Was taking as shower when it hit here. Probably 1/4", ground is white, roads are black.

[dendrite]

Did about the same amount here at 670ft. I missed it though....down in Manchester shopping, driving up 93 and hit Concord and it was wet and then wtf? snow on the ground. Some still on the roads up by my way as I drove home around 6,

Same situation for me...I was in Hooksett/Pembroke/Manchester all day and missed the squalls. There was snow cover from about Penacook to southern Northfield, but there's only a light dusting here. I saw Scott's cam earlier and noticed Weirs was getting blitzed. Oh well...I'll take my failure in November instead of Jan.

[j24vt]

Picked up 0.8" today. Ground is white for the first time this year.

[tamarack]

Given how far north the line reached (Coburn Gore, in Ekster's bulletin), it must've split and gone around MBY, a common occurrence with summer TS but unusual for snowsqualls. We got all the wind (not good for getting the deer moving during the final hour of the season) but only -SN and not even enough to call it a dusting. No reason to complain, though, as there's still 1"+ on the ground from Fri snow, and yest low of 13 is the season's coldest.

[MaineJayhawk]

Given how far north the line reached (Coburn Gore, in Ekster's bulletin), it must've split and gone around MBY, a common occurrence with summer TS but unusual for snowsqualls. We got all the wind (not good for getting the deer moving during the final hour of the season) but only -SN and not even enough to call it a dusting. No reason to complain, though, as there's still 1"+ on the ground from Fri snow, and yest low of 13 is the season's coldest.

It surprises me you got skunked. I'd have guessed you would be among the lucky ones to get blasted. It was great for like 10 minutes. lol A nice appetizer for winter.

[powderfreak]

imby started around noon and stopped at 3ish. Finally feels like winter around here, snow stuck to everything that was was thawing out from the glaze yesterday. Even saw a few plow trucks.

Yeah, it looked beautiful when I left Stowe yesterday. I drove down to Albany, NY to spend a couple nights with family as I had to work Thanksgiving (the mountain never closes, haha). When I left the ski resort I had around 2.5" of new snow on my car at 1,500ft and down at my place at 800ft I found 1.2" on the picnic table.

Fun elevational observations I measured around 2pm yesterday:

3,600ft...3.9"

1,500ft...2.5"

800ft...1.2"

On my drive down to 89 in Waterbury and then over to the Richmond exit where I then meander SW to RT 7 in Charlotte, my observations are as follows...

Snow rapidly decreased as I headed out of Stowe south to Waterbury Center and Waterbury. In Stowe the grass was almost covered yet by the time I hit Waterbury Center it looked more like a dusting of a half inch. Snow continued to look like a half inch coating through J.Spin's area (which is surprising because there's usually a bump up in snowfall there) but then snow cover seemed to increase through Bolton and Jonesville, before tapering again in Richmond/Williston. I ran into another little maximum of what looked like an inch or so over by Hinesburg in the west slope foothills around 800-900ft elevation.

As soon as I hit the real Champlain Valley there was nothing but a trace on some mulch, as usual in these events. I am so happy to not live in that valley anymore. What a snow hole at times.

[powderfreak]

Fun elevational observations I measured around 2pm yesterday:

3,600ft...3.9"

1,500ft...2.5"

800ft...1.2"

Ahhh, the first questionable co-op reading of the season. Granted it was quite windy up there yesterday, but there's no way 0.19" of liquid at temperatures in the teens only produced 1.5" of new snow. I may be affiliated with the resort but I measured 3.9" literally a quarter mile away from the co-op stake on the same Toll Road that the stake is located on.

 
DAILY HYDROMETEOROLOGICAL DATA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BURLINGTON VT
531 PM EST SAT NOV 27 2010

STATION            PRECIP   TEMPERATURE   PRESENT     	SNOW
              	24 HRS   MAX MIN CUR   WEATHER 	NEW TOTAL SWE
...VERMONT...
MOUNT MANSFIELD 	0.19 	M   M  12                1.5   2

We even had roughly a full inch more than that 2,500ft lower at 1,500ft elevation, and I measured 1.2" down at 800ft. There's no way the base of the mountain got more snow than the summit, haha.

Anyway, here was my car around 2:30 yesterday afternoon as I was leaving work:

Might as well post an action shot, too. Skiing during the squalls... nice, wintry feel to Thanksgiving weekend.

[MaineJayhawk]

I like the tree boughs sagging under the weight of the snow.

[skierinvermont]

Nice obs from Stowe and the area.. I concur on the CPV. Hopefully this nickel and dime stuff starts to add up for the ski resorts, but I'm hoping you get dumped on soon. I think I'm going to stay in a hostel near Sugarbush for a week or two in late Dec/january. Is there much older snow above 3k?

[powderfreak]

Yesterday evening on my drive south through the Champlain Valley, I just had to stop and take a couple pics to show folks how much of a snow-hole this valley can be in these terrain oriented events.

Both of these pics were taken on RT 7 (runs north-south through the valley) just outside of Vergennes in Addison County... not all that far from the Middlebury area.

This pic is looking due west towards the Adirondacks (note Adk foothills are white with snow, valley brown) Only the foothills are visible as the High Peaks are shrouded in snow showers. You can see snow showers moving off the Adirondack foothills and drying up as they enter the Champlain Valley. Not only does the snow dry up, but the clouds do, too... owing to massive downsloping flow off the 2-5,000ft terrain of the Adirondacks. It is mostly clear over my head in the middle of the valley.

Now, this is looking due East towards the Green Mountains. As you can see, the clouds re-develop and it starts snowing again on the upslope. You can only see the foothills as the 4,000ft spine (Sugarbush ridgeline... Mt Abe, Lincoln Peak, Mt Ellen) is not visible through the snow.

Just amazing meso-scale processes occur on a very regular basis in this area... driving through the valley last night around sunset was just awesome for any weather weenie because although it wasn't snowing, just seeing first-hand how this all shakes out is quite amazing. Snow on all sides and crystal clear skies overhead in the valley.

[powderfreak]

Nice obs from Stowe and the area.. I concur on the CPV. Hopefully this nickel and dime stuff starts to add up for the ski resorts, but I'm hoping you get dumped on soon. I think I'm going to stay in a hostel near Sugarbush for a week or two in late Dec/january. Is there much older snow above 3k?

There's really no "old" snow left on the mountain... there are a few drifts here and there that are rock solid, but otherwise, there's nothing. Non-snowmaking areas were brown on Wednesday/Thursday. Then we got 1" of snow/sleet and ice on Friday... that at least whitened things up a bit, and when I left yesterday it was starting to look a little more promising with some fresh drifts, snow covered trees, and finally some snow-on-the-ground.

However, this stuff was the usual low-density upslope stuff and we will be back to bare ground after the rain on Tue Night and Wednesday. Thank god for good snowmaking capacity. A place like MRG that relies on natural snow is going to have a lot of problems opening in a pattern like this.

[ski MRG]

There's really no "old" snow left on the mountain... there are a few drifts here and there that are rock solid, but otherwise, there's nothing. Non-snowmaking areas were brown on Wednesday/Thursday. Then we got 1" of snow/sleet and ice on Friday... that at least whitened things up a bit, and when I left yesterday it was starting to look a little more promising with some fresh drifts, snow covered trees, and finally some snow-on-the-ground.

However, this stuff was the usual low-density upslope stuff and we will be back to bare ground after the rain on Tue Night and Wednesday. Thank god for good snowmaking capacity. A place like MRG that relies on natural snow is going to have a lot of problems opening in a pattern like this.

Have no fear, General Stark Mountain will be in full swing soon. Many a December has dawned bleak only to have a complete reversal of fortunes. 12/18/07

[powderfreak]

[/b]

Have no fear, General Stark Mountain will be in full swing soon. Many a December has dawned bleak only to have a complete reversal of fortunes. 12/18/07

Nice shot! I do love your eternal optimism... 2007-2008 was an epic December though, lol. Mansfield got like 6 feet that month. Nothing I see has epic December written on it.

[ski MRG]

Nice shot! I do love your eternal optimism... 2007-2008 was an epic December though, lol. Mansfield got like 6 feet that month. Nothing I see has epic December written on it.

I think by months end we'll all have done quite well. This blocky pattern will end up paying dividends.

[MaineJayhawk]

I think by months end we'll all have done quite well. This blocky pattern will end up paying dividends.

Violently agree.

circle of trust

[ski MRG]

Violently agree.

circle of trust

You've stepped back into the circle of trust.lol

[dryslot]

I think by months end we'll all have done quite well. This blocky pattern will end up paying dividends.

It should, Days and days of snow..........

[powderfreak]

I think by months end we'll all have done quite well. This blocky pattern will end up paying dividends.

One can only hope. I must say that I was and still am a very optimistic person... but over the past couple of years this industry has turned me into a more "prepare for the worst case scenario" type of person. If you plan for the worst (and aren't just sitting back going, it will snow, heavy, heavy snow) then you'll come out alright. Right now we are focused on Chrstimas to New Year's holiday period and although I do think it will snow, we need to plan for it with the idea that it may not snow before then. And you need to estimate the number of potential snowmaking hours per week given the weather pattern, then calculate the amount of acres you can bury in X amount of time, and figure out what terrain you can get open by week 4, prices you can expect to charge given X amount of terrain open, etc. That way you are prepared for anything... and if it snows, it is all gravy.

Weather quickly becomes more than a hobby in this light... and we can't just sit and say, "oh don't worry, by the end of the month we will be buried in heavy, heavy snow."

[eekuasepinniW]

Added those who posted their location to the mesomap as a layer you can toggle on and off.

http://www.weirsonline.com/mesomap.htm

[MaineJayhawk]

Added those who posted their location to the mesomap as a layer you can toggle on and off.

Cool. Bookmarked.

41.7F ... the dusting we had yesterday is melting in the sun.

[powderfreak]

Added those who posted their location to the mesomap as a layer you can toggle on and off.

http://www.weirsonline.com/mesomap.htm

That's awesome. Thanks! I gotta say that we absolutely love your NNE temp map at Stowe... I've passed that link around to a lot of people at the ski resort and its a new favorite for monitoring area temperatures. People love the temps overlaid with the topography.

[skierinvermont]

Just amazing meso-scale processes occur on a very regular basis in this area... driving through the valley last night around sunset was just awesome for any weather weenie because although it wasn't snowing, just seeing first-hand how this all shakes out is quite amazing. Snow on all sides and crystal clear skies overhead in the valley.

Awesome documentation of the CPV.. I can remember very similar conditions many times although that is one of the more dramatic. Very occasionally we would get the reverse with some LE snow or clouds off Champlain with clear skies to the east and west. Also 1/3 last year... I think northwesterly surface winds combined with low level cold damning against the greens helped create lift in the valley along with easterly flow aloft (I think that's how it wax explained to me.. did I get that right?). The effects of the mountains were always impressive one way or another.

[powderfreak]

Awesome documentation of the CPV.. I can remember very similar conditions many times although that is one of the more dramatic. Very occasionally we would get the reverse with some LE snow or clouds off Champlain with clear skies to the east and west. Also 1/3 last year... I think northwesterly surface winds combined with low level cold damning against the greens helped create lift in the valley along with easterly flow aloft (I think that's how it wax explained to me.. did I get that right?). The effects of the mountains were always impressive one way or another.

Oh there are certainly some events where the CPV does well... northerly flow causes the Champlain Valley convergence as the low level winds are funneled between the 'Dacks and Greens. That's big during the tail end of nor'easters or any system that moves off to the northeast of us... usually happens right before upslope starts when winds back a bit more NW than N.

Last year's 1/3 event was caused by orographic blocking. It would've been a usual NW upslope event, except there was an inversion that was very low and below the elevation of the Green Mtn Spine. Low level moisture wrapped around that low off to our northeast, and was funneled into the Champlain Valley and normally would've produced the snowfall maximum along the Spine and western slopes in the upslope region... but due to the low inversion the low level wind had no where to go, and the main band of snow was removed westward away from the usual upslope region.

BTV writes:

"Orographically blocked flow (due to an inversion below summit level) contributed to (speed) convergence across the Vermont side of the Champlain Valley during the event, with the maximum upward vertical motion and precipitation displaced upwind of the Green Mountains into the more populated area around Burlington."

And if you look at the snowfall map, the max snowfall axis mimics the Green Mountain Spine perfectly, just 15-20 miles west of it. Had the inversion been higher, the max snowfall would've been in the usual upslope region and over the spine, as far as I know. The western slope and spine often sees these 20-30" fluffy snowfalls from upslope, but what makes this event awesome is that the inversion caused this snow to occur further upstream of the spin.