tamarack

PWM reported snow from that storm shortly after 4 AM but it wasn't until almost 12:30 when I saw the first flakes from my office in AUG Eastside. Within less than 60 seconds I could barely see the pines across Hospital Street about 500 feet away - perhaps the greatest "wall of snow" I've seen (some Fort Kent snowsqualls the only competition). We had 16.0" at our Gardiner home, 2nd biggest snowfall in our 13 winters there. (Blockbuster storms landed elsewhere during that period.)

The Grinch is off the board this year, one of the few times.

Both BOS and PVD recorded 17" from that storm, but by the time fans had pushed the powder around to clear seats, there must've been some huge piles.

The 8" on Christmas 2017 (and 1978 in Fort Kent) is about it for snow on that day, but have more on Christmas Eve, especially the 15" thunderblizzard in 1966. Only T-Day snow that comes to mind was 2005, only 3.6" but the snow-starved kids (then living in SC) enjoyed 8 hours of steady daytime flakes. Only later did we learn of the 2 tornados on the midcoast that day.

Only 26 years' record, but the average departures from 12/21-12/28 are illustrative: 21: -1.3 22: +0.2 23: +3.2 24: +4.0 25: +1.1 26: +0.2 27: +0.8 28: -0.4

Had cold rain 7-9 last evening, an hour of nothing then resuming as snow. Accum began closer to 11 with 1.1" total and the trees nicely frosted. Some nightmare flashback from folks noting 2009-10, the winter that died here at 1 AM on Jan 3 when snow changed to rain.

That winter was lame in its first half - only 15" thru Jan 31 and a mere trace of "pack" at the Farmington co-op. 43 days later the pack was 56" (tied with 1971 for 2nd, behind 1969) as that period had 95", including storms of 18, 17, 15, 14, 13, plus several smaller ones.

Had 0.06" cold RA 7-9 PM, a pause in precip, then lgt SN after 10. Total 1.1" from 0.17" LE, the start of which melted as it landed.

93-94 was 3rd snowiest of my 13 winters in Gardiner but had by far the best pack, plus the coldest January. Top 5: 1. 1960-61 (NNJ): 100"+, 3 storms 18-24", NJ record depths. 2. 1983-84 (Fort Kent): Biggest pack I've seen, most strong storms, 26.5" March dump, biggest snowfall. 3a. 1976-77 (Fort Kent: 186.7", 2nd tallest pack 3b. 1981-82 (Fort Kent): 185.8", coldest WCI [1/18/82], April blizzard (vies with 2/3-4/61 for most impactful snowstorm - NYC schools reopened on 2/13). 5. 2007-08 (New Sharon): 142.3", huge SDDs. 2 storms/week much of Dec-Feb. Honorable mentions: 1957-58 (NNJ): 18" Feb blizzard, 24" paste bomb on the equinox; 2016-17 (New Sharon): 127.5", 2 storms of 21" plus 15.5" in the Pi Day blizzard.

Jan 1-15, 2014: Temp 22.9/0.3/11.6 (5.1 BN), Precip 3.46" (1.68" AN), Snow 2.1" (7.2" BN) Month finally had more snow than precip - 5.1" vs 3.77". 2nd least snowy January at the Farmington co-op, POR Jan 1893 thru Sept 2022. Dec 1973 (at BGR): 9.50" precip, 7.9" SN. At 6 PM on 12/17 we had RA+ and 56° with 50 mph SE gusts. Same time NYC had 25° and ZR while my parents' place (where I'd lived until Jan 73) had 15 and IP.

Popped up there at 1 PM, probably because they had more sun than CAR had thought. Felt like September here as the max was 15°+ AN. I put on 30 after I turned 35 happened quick lol Six weeks before turning 35 in late January, I needed a walking cast for a non-displaced break on my lower leg. (Don't fight with logging trucks.) February thru early April generally required the most snowshoe mileage and I would lose weight during that time. The cast and rehab kept me off the webs for 8-9 weeks, but I kept eating the usual amount and gained over 15 pounds.

0.41" here, taking the pack down to 8". Currently in the 40s, probably pushing the pack down another 1-2". The lack of sustained cold can be discouraging - the cold blast of early Feb 2023 lasted less than 36 hours even after setting a new WCI at MWN. However, the cold spell as 2017 went into 2018 was worthy of northern Aroostook - only 7 years ago.

Here we get siggy snow from Miller A's about as frequently as thundersnow. Just look back to last week when it showed the mid Atlantic getting 40" of snow on the 22nd. The NNJ town where I grew up had 3" overnight. Only 37" to go.

You had white ground last Christmas, 7 days after the torch-deluge? The 4 major SNE sites show not a flake over that period, as does Norfolk in the CT hills. Up here we had a dusting on 12/13 but otherwise had nary a flake from 12/6 thru the 29th. (However, we had 7.21" RA during that period.)

My "Grinch list" includes those w/o snow OG. Current score is 16 rainy Grinches, 4 with rain but bare ground, one with warmth but no snow or rain, and a lowly 5 with no Grinch storms/wx. Over the 26 years, the period Dec 23-25 has run 3° AN and except for the best non-Grinch (8" and cold on Christmas 2017) there's been scant snowfall.

We only have a tree when the grandkids are here for Christmas, every 2nd year, and it's set up on the front porch - with 11 people in a small house there's no place to put it unless we yanked the Jotul out from its corner. Always get a tree from our woodlot, though last year it was the top from one of the many trees blown from the lot and onto the powerlines on 12/18. Genny ran for 101 hours, longest outage for me since Jan 1953 (6 days, NNJ ice storm).

Our Lab mix quickly learned to love the snow (other than the Pi-Day blizzard in 2017, which spooked her big time). However, the "mix" failed to include "retriever" and she doesn't like the (liquid) water. Our black Lab (2003-16) would be in any water, any season, any conditions.

CAR has 43 for tomorrow's high at PQI.

We had 5 storms worth 45.0" in 10 days, 2/7-16/2017. Our Lab mix thru Maine Lab Rescue arrived (from TX) on the 4th - quite the shock for her! Bath co-op recorded 16" from the freak band in mid-December 2020.

Pit2 is in Bath, northern part of town and right on the Kennebec estuary.

Near zero this morning in still air.

MBY is in the center of a 18-20 jack, which guarantees that it won't verify. Cloudless blue here. If the clouds stay away, our frost pocket should go subzero tonight.

Wednesday's rain has washed that stuff at least to LEW, maybe farther.

Hey, that movie's theme was a winter resort about to go bankrupt due to lack of snow - 70+ years ago (until the sappy happy ending). Still 9" of ironclad at the stake, probably 3" or more SWE. If that gets Grinched to brown ground, there would be some flood headlines.

I'm sure it's official co-ops, and a big report like that would be subject to QC. The early Feb storm in 2021 included a 35" report from Mt. Arlington but the checking dropped that to upper 20s. (That site still had more snow in Feb than I had for the entire season. Not a good look.)