tamarack

Given what I boldfaced, that A+ for 95-96 seems odd because of all the pack-destroying rain events. It did have loads of snow - the 138" was tops by 30" in our 13 winters at Gardiner - but it was only 5th for SDDs. I haven't tried to apply my rating method on those 13 years, but if I did, I'd guess no higher than B/B+. Looking at the continuing period of meh wx (since the April 2024 paste bomb), I noted that both last winter and the current season had no snow forecast ranges that extended above 12". First time we've had consecutive winters with such modest forecasts and it's very doubtful there will be any warned storms before 2026-27. Also, only 3 warned events this winter and last. Only 15-16 with 2 had less. We finally had a strong storm but other than a few IP to start, it was all rain. The 19.6" storm in March was fun but had only 0.77" LE and little wind, a modest storm that had fabulous dendrite formation. Looks like this will also be only the 8th winter in which pack failed to be sustained thru March 31. Unless we get a snowy surprise, my rating will probably be a bit lower than what I proposed upthread.

When driving at night and trying to stay alert, I've found that the warm liquid effect hits more quickly than caffeine. Not a cold-coffee fan, so Pepsi or Mt Dew is usually my choice.

Back to the midgets here. After the Jan 25-27 fluff bomb we were 31% over the average YTD. The 7 weeks since are just over 50%, and falling.

We had forced air at our back settlement house in Fort Kent. We'd turn down the thermostat when we would be out of state visiting family. When we returned and turned up the heat, the furnace turned on and off a half dozen times in about a half hour while the air warmed up the walls/furniture and such.

My memory may not be accurate, but it recalls the cooldown being the 2nd half of the month. Today and tomorrow will be AN, maybe enough to push the current +4.3 to near +5. Not sure we get any serious AN warmth rest of the month, though I think it finishes 1-2° AN. March 1-3 were way BN but since then all but one day (13th, 0.4° BN) has been AN, with 8-10 being +18-20.

Look on page 1 of this thread for the link to send a PM.

The farm country in central Aroostook is closer and that area has some Midwest-type blizzards. (Not this year so far, however.)

I've occasionally done the 10 readings for individual storms but doing it for pack depth in a place like Maine with snow atop snow would resemble the physicist's uncertainty principle - all that tromping thru the snow affecting the depth. I place the stake at the same spot in our garden plot and stay away from it, to avoid that affecting. I suppose if one could separate the 10 spots by 50+ feet and avoid old tracks during the next measurement . . . Too complicated for me. Pack grew to 13" this morning, back to 11 now.

Forecast language included "1 to 3 feet, life-threatening conditions". We got 10.3" of 6:1 heavily rimed flakes with temp mostly <20° and strong wind. Almost nobody in New England had a lower total. Great storm, great season, tall pack (Farmington co-op depth went from a trace in late January to 56" in March) but at our Gardiner home the Superstorm was less than spectacular.

3.4"/0.25" here, patches of blue and trees are emptying. The high ratios continue. Long term here it's very close to 10:1 while seasons have ranged from 12.4 down to 7.1, but this snow season is currently at 14.2. Without the Jan 25-27 fluff (19.6" with ratio 25:1) it would be about 12:1, still AN. We'll reach the Ides with only 0.71" precip (March avg 3.71") as BN continues to rule. Maybe Mon-Tues 1-2", would bring the month closer to the average. (Would likely push the Sandy River to bank full, maybe higher if ice jams form.)

Jeff's first 18" event was 9.5" more than here and he's 4.2" ahead since Jan 31. Other than that, we're running about at climo, with the foothills about 15% higher than LEW. As for summer, we had some hot days, including only our 2nd official heat wave on August 11-13, but as climate is warming our convective SVR seems waning. Last year we had but 5 days with thunder, 3 fewer than any other year and 1/3 of average. Also haven't had significant effects from a TC since Floyd in 1999 or a real rain and blow since Bob.

We were in PA for a family reunion when the mid-20s morning hit on May 18, 2023, but somehow we avoided serious damage. Our quinces and apples generally have peak blossoms in the May 15-25 period and last year they were right on time. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't - 19-25 had potentially over 100 hours of sunlight but that week had less than 30 minutes in total, and the average maxima was 50.6, which was 16° BN with nearly 3" of cold RA. The poor pollinators were absent for the most part until long after blossom peak, so fruit set was awful for the quinces and 2 of the 3 apples, barely reaching mediocre for the 3rd. Those few fruits had all the nutrients, however, for some of the biggest and nicest we've grown (though few and far between). 2010 was a different disaster, with Feb/Mar/April way AN (all 3 our mildest here) and blossoms were peaking by May 8-10. Then 11-13 had minima 23 to 26 and killed essentially every blossom, also torched the new growth on ash, maple, even some oak. The trees set new buds and shoots but used a lot more energy than in a normal growing season.

The 2002 Christmas night storm was forecast 8-12" here and verified at 1". Belgrade Village, less than 10 miles southeast, had 8", parts of AUG had 15" and GYX 18", their biggest on record until Feb 2013, still in 3rd place.

2001, 2007, 2020, 2024 averaged 35" after the equinox. Doesn't last nearly as long, but quite wintry. Add 1982 for the most "wintry" April storm for the Northeast in the past century or longer.

We were taking our daughter to PWM for her flight to PHL, so we'd have missed even if we tried. (And the snow in PHL and Harrisburg canceled her flight. She and a couple dozen fellow 'refugees' are overnighting in the secured section of the airport, and will catch the 5:20 AM flight to DCA thence to PHL, probably on a 2nd airplane. Fortunately, she had no checked baggage.) Sandy River was up thanks to yesterday's warmth, but nothing serious. If we get an inch-plus at 50° on Monday, could be some excitement. Ice cover should still be thick and solid, and a 3-mile jam formed from Farmington Falls to the head of rapids in New Sharon last December during ice-in.

2000-01 had one of the best packs we've had here, especially late - 48" OG at my 9 PM obs time on March 31. Even Fort Kent (avg winter 134" in our 10 years there) never entered April with that much. 2004-05 was back loaded here as well. Thru the first week of February we'd not had a single event of 4"+, which is ridiculous for a locale that averages almost 90"/year. Then we had 60" in the next 31 days, 2/10 thru 3/13, to finish at 94.3". 2002-03 has similarities with this winter: lots of suppressed events, one big storm and little else of note, and cold. That season had 13.8" on Jan 3-4 and nothing else greater than 7" (and that came in November), finishing more than 20" BN. This winter it's 19.6" on Jan 25-27 and nothing else beyond 8.5", though that #2 event came on Christmas Eve and provided loads of fun for the grandkids. Their previous Christmas visit, in 2023, failed to show them a single flake or snow pile until they were headed home on Dec 30.

Mid 60s yesterday, mid 30s today. At least the IP/ZR didn't materialize. Thursday's quick warm-up appears to be off the table as we're heading into a string of messy events, apparently none strong.

Thru February it's B for temps and C+ for snow. We're slightly BN for snowfall season-to-date but the Jan fluff bomb rates the plus. A slight ding for the Feb blizzard when 2-4" forecast verified at 0.2". We were never in the game for the real event.

By 3 days. They hit 85 on 3/13/1990. Their 78 on Feb 21, 2018 might be even more anomalous, but today is only the 15th day they've reached 80 or warmer in the month of March, POR from 1/1/1869 so it's March #157 there.

65 here above 12" pack, but almost no wind and 100% sun. Earliest time we've gone above 60 prior to March 18, when the 2012 heat blast arrived.

Got enough teeny "flakes" to almost cover the ground, but our daughter's flight PHL-PWM came right on schedule.

We had a 16" paste bomb which inverted the supporting bows of my Ranger's Tonneau cover. (We were out of state, came home 5 days later to find a 5'x6'x6" ice cube atop the cover.) Eustis at 1,300' reported 34.5" and we (Maine Public Lands) were finishing a multi-year harvest on the Redington Public Lot. That winter the work was all north of the AT with elev 2,400 to 2,900 - might've gotten 40" there. Last load passed thru the very narrow crossing of the AT (as permitted with stringent constraints) on 3/22 just as the snow got super heavy; no way normal plowing could've kept that 200' AT inner corridor clear, would've needed a BIG payloader.

The 93 forecast language included "Life-threatening conditions". Only other time I can recall was the morning of Jan 9, 1998 - day 2 of the ice storm here. A line of strong TS had formed in eastern NY and forecasters were faced with the possibility of 50 mph gusts on ice-loaded trees and infrastructure. Fortunately, the storms dissipated quickly. This thread's storm brought 18-20 hours of steady 1/2"/hr snow on 20G30 NE winds, for 9.5". Farmington co-op recorded 14". Two more storms by mid-month added 11" then storms of 22-23 (16") and 30-31 (19") brought the March total to 55.5". Only the 61.5" of Dec 1976 in Fort Kent had more in my experience. Depth at 9 PM on 3/31 here was 48"; even FK never had that much that late (close, 47" on 3/31/84).

May be okay if the melt time isn't accompanied by significant rain. I've not seen any major (3rd/4th order streams and main stem rivers) NNE watercourses get beyond minor flooding with snowmelt only. (Of course, much of the modest snow in March 2012 was gone before the 80s arrived.)

Had to fasten a stick to the top part of the stake that winter, as it's "only" 61 inches above ground. Last time we reached 40" was March 2019. Got to 36" in March 2023 but tallest since then was the very brief 28" during the January fluff bomb - was obvious that the 25:1 snow was going to settle big time. March average snowfall here is 17.1" but it's often feast or famine. Five times it brought 30"+, including 55.5" in 2001, but 9 times it ranged from 10.0" down to 0.1". 15 of our 48 storms of 10"+ came in March, and also 6 of the 19 events 15"+. Next highest is February (no surprise) with 11 and 5.