Postcard Snow Came and Went
Perhaps Tim Irr said it best last night. “So what you are describing is a November snow”, Tim said in response to Chris Bailey’s 5:30 edition weather forecast on Tuesday. Sometimes out of the mouths of babes, well let’s just say Tim nailed in on the head.
Today’s picture postcard snow indeed reminded me of a Thanksgiving week walk in the park. The grass was coated with a half inch of wet snow ala opening day for hunters during buck season. The evergreen trees were neatly decked out in their Christmassy white ornaments of snow. The rooftops steamed from the melting snow once the peaks of midday sun shone through the late fall-like grey. Those wisps of steam are symbolic of the dull winter we have experienced.
As expected, paved surfaces repelled this latest attempt at a comeback from Old Man Winter. Roads and sidewalks stayed wet throughout the 4 hour snowfall though I did see some above ground-level steps coated with snow.
Concerns tonight shift toward a temperature fall into the 20s with a dusting of snow in spots. Any damp or snowy patch will be slick, so best to exercise caution as you drive down a hill or along a winding road like Route 10 through Logan and Lincoln Counties.
So how lame was today’s snow, you ask? Well, Richwood in Nicholas County measured a scant inch on the Gauley River and even mighty Snowshoe Mountain could muster only a three inch accretion. At the media center at the base of 4848’ they claim 80 inches has fallen this season. Between you and me, I sense that number is inflated by 20%. Still I don’t want to pile on since the ski industry has taken a big hit this winter.
Looking ahead, the next arctic front will pass on Friday night preceded by a few hours of rain but followed by several snow squalls. Odds are strong we will recoat the ground with an inch or two of snow by sunrise Saturday.
Weekend highs will struggle to get to freezing while lows dip into the teens by Sunday morning. We will dust off the windchill this weekend as it dips below 10 degrees.
So much like a November snowfall, today’s coating has come and gone already leaving kids and teachers to wonder will there be any snow days the rest of this winter? But a word of caution, there is more cold and snow in the February pipeline.
