tamarack

10/21-23/1979: 80s in SNE, upper 70s CAR/Fort Kent. Also 10/24-27/1963, more SNE 80s and mid-70s in the far north (before 30-31 when the remains of Ginny dumped 12-20" up there and killed two people on Katahdin.)

My recollection was that the Euro and GFS kept swapping run to run - in opposite directions - between slammer and OTS.

Into early March here, though the good snow events ended with 2 advisory storms 2/25-28, resulting in winter's tallest pack. We narrowly (like, 20 miles) missed a big dump on March 7, getting only IP/ZR and about 20 hours w/o power. Lots of 15-20" reports from the mountains. The 3 big dawgs in Dec/Jan were merely 2 nice storms and a 1.5" fringe here, while the first 2 had verified 3+ hour blizzard conditions at BGR, WVL and AUG. Drove to/from AUG in both and the conditions were way worse on Boxing Day than on Jan 12 - wind seemed well below 35 in the latter one, 50+ in the former.

When we moved to BGR on Jan. 23, 1973 so I could study forestry at U. Maine, I was familiar with most of the trees in NNJ where I'd grown up. Maine evergreens, not so much. A few days after the move, I drove west on Rt 2 into the next town and stopped to walk into a roadside stand of evergreens, to see if I could tell spruce from fir - I had no idea which was which. Like any other experienced forester in NNE, I can now discern between the two from a distance, but I clearly remember my earlier total inability to make that call.

Once one gets north of Rt 2, most of the "pines" are spruce and fir. (And maybe you knew that already.)

To get anywhere near my place, you would've needed to take Rt 27 north from AUG and then turn left onto Rt 2. A mile from that corner there's blinker lights and we're 2 road miles north from there. Not as scenic as the notches, but Rt 2 is mostly a nice drive though as the main east-west highway in NNE it has more than its share of trucks.

Only 2-3 miles from dryslot, too. About the same as from Lava Rock when a few mils to 302. When my parents lived in Woodsville, NH, we would take the same route from Lewiston to North Conway on the way there, then drive the Kanc and Kinsman Notch. Less spectacular but nice rural Maine was Route 11 from Mechanics Falls to Rt 302. Our return trip usually took the northerly route, to Jefferson and then Rt 2 to Bethel, 26 to 219 thru the Sumner woods, another even more rural Maine country drive.

We've been a bit spoiled here by Novembers 2018 and 2019, with continuous cover beginning on the 10th and 11th, respectively. Only 2002 (17th) is even close and the only other year in which continuous cover started in November was 2014, with its 13" dump on 11/26-27. 20 of 24 years have seen bare ground in December, though sometimes only for a day or two.

Quebecois from Estcourt and nearby villages cross into Estcourt Station (pop ~20) to get cheaper US gas, though up there even the US fuel is more costly than in more southerly parts of Maine.

Though your overall pack retention isn't quite as good as here, yours begins earlier. Only 7 of 24 T-Days have been white here (29%), with 4 being within continuous cover. Average date for permanent pack works out to exactly 6.5 and median date is 12/5. Range is from Nov 10 in 2018 to Jan 7 in 2011. Last day of continuous pack averages April 6 with median the 5th. Earliest is March 15 in 2016, latest April 23 in 2001. Average length of continuous cover is 117 days, median 120, range from 81 in 15-16 to 163 in 18-19.

That was the case here. We reached peak during the first few days of October but still had great color a week later. Then the hard freezes of 10/9-12 had leaves rattling thru the branches even in calm air, and the RA/wind of 10/14 brought down nearly all the rest. Now it's stick season with some brown leaves on oak and beech. Overall, it was a fine display, with near normal to slightly early timing.

3rd Moderna booster last Friday, had the most shoulder soreness but not all that bad. The #2 Shingrix stick - same day - in the opposite shoulder was worse, but still relatively minor.

Three in a row here, though 19-20 was only 4" shy thanks to having the season's two biggest snowfalls post-equinox plus the May surprise. (It was well forecast, but any May measurable snow is a surprise.)

Only 24 years here, but Dec has averaged 18.7" with coefficient of variation 63% while March runs 16.4" with CV 78%. March is a bit odd because it's had 5 years with 30" but no others above 19.3". The "more big storms in March" has held true here even though December has had storms of 24" and 21" while the biggest in March is 19.9". That said, March has featured 9 events of 12"+ and December only 4.

Just as fake as Kev's oak-infused dews. In Maine's St. John Valley the inversion would generally start about 200' above the ground - smoke from the cedar mill's cone burner across the river in Canada would layer at about that level. When I turned toward the north on the way to our office by the river and saw that layer, I'd know that it would be 10-15° colder there than at our back settlement home 450' higher.

We'll be almost exactly on the average after today's slightly BN temps, and should likely finish in the +1 range, possibly +2 if we get 2 more warm rains instead of one. I don't mind a mild October, as long as it's not followed by an AN November.

Stations in NW NJ from which I've downloaded data average 40-45", topping out at +/-100" in 1960-61. Unfortunately, nearly all of those sites blinked out a few years after the millennium.

I think that red oak got its name due to its heartwood color when freshly cut. Most of them, including the ones here, offer auburn brown at best. For reds from oak, the planted pin oaks in Farmington (they're not native to this area) are the best. They color late, when the native hardwoods (except aspen) are sticks.

Was that 14" event on Jan 14? We were fringed a bit for that one, 8" at my place and only 5.5" in Farmington but 15 in AUG. Radar had a beautiful yellow banana arching from IZG thru LEW and AUG to about Belfast. Started about 9:30 AM in AUG and when I left work at 2 PM (that's another story) there was 10" of fluff in the parking lot, easily parted by my little pickup. Driving between fields in north Augusta was interesting, as the low visibility and flat light made the road and snowbanks look the same - I had to use the black phone cable as a guide, hoping that it wouldn't cross the road. By the time I reached Belgrade, snow rate was just moderate.

The winter when SWFEs went wild. Like you, one each of 10"/12" plus 8" or less but scads of events, total 142.3". Pack reached 48" on 3/1 and never went below 35" that month, SDDs tops by far in our 24 winters here with only 2018-19 with its early and often November snows even coming within shouting distance.

Last time we installed was probably in 2013, and with the heat pump in place, we'll never need to do it again.

The high latitudes are warming fastest, at least in the N. Hemisphere, which does reduce temp gradient. That's probably overcome by the greater energy in warmer oceans/atmosphere. Barely got below 50 this morning as clouds/fog hung tough. Not often will my frost pocket have a morning low about 20° milder than in CT.

Might be decent, if it doesn't go silly like "Twister". Up here we have little earthquakes, little tornados, little hurricanes and some big snowstorms. That's a nice combo.

The pessimist is never disappointed (but always miserable).

Or 150 miles northeast, so we might get something more than clouds and gales.