I want snow! How to find it?

[Faruiza]

Next week marks our 13th wedding anniversary. We usually take off on a road trip to Northern Nevada hoping for some snow, but for the last couple of years, we seem to have missed the first snow by about a week. Last year we took a route through Northern California, the corner of Oregon, through Idaho, and down. We missed a good blizzard by hours at Shasta apparently, so we got no snow at all last year.

My question is, is there a way to help predict where snow might be? I realize that meteorology is not completely accurate or anything, but I'm hoping for something better than just a shot in the dark. I want to go have some snow!

Eh, maybe I'm out of luck.

[Finagle]

Ski reports? Right now Northern Nevada (http://www.onthesnow.com/NV/skireport.html) doesn't look too promising, though.

[Faruiza]

Aha! That's a good idea.
Bah. Stupid global warming! ;)

[FourPaws]

Next week marks our 13th wedding anniversary. We usually take off on a road trip to Northern Nevada hoping for some snow, but for the last couple of years, we seem to have missed the first snow by about a week. Last year we took a route through Northern California, the corner of Oregon, through Idaho, and down. We missed a good blizzard by hours at Shasta apparently, so we got no snow at all last year.

My question is, is there a way to help predict where snow might be? I realize that meteorology is not completely accurate or anything, but I'm hoping for something better than just a shot in the dark. I want to go have some snow!

Eh, maybe I'm out of luck.

Here in Maine, I can just make it when it's cold enough. All it takes is a garden hose, some ball valves, a few pieces of pipe, and an air compressor. It's fun :)

[Bugs Cunny]

How far are you willing to drive? Somewhere at a high altitude like Denver might have snow.

[yelimS]

How do we know you're not undercover?

[Twoflower]

I just flew from Sacramento to Boise & back, with window seat, a couple of days ago. There's a bit of snow dusting the higher peaks, but that's about all.

If there manages to be an actual winter-type storm in the next week, try checking the CalTrans highway information page (http://www.dot.ca.gov/hq/roadinfo/) to see where the chain controls are; anything at a higher elevation that that should be getting snowed on.

[Athena]

Come to where I am virtually any time between late December and March. I can guarantee you will see snow. Heck, I have some now; want me to send you a box? :D

[jillscott8763]

My question is, is there a way to help predict where snow might be? I realize that meteorology is not completely accurate or anything, but I'm hoping for something better than just a shot in the dark. I want to go have some snow!

ummmmm...i really have to wonder why you think an international message board would have better info than a TV station would have.

[Telemark]

Or go to http://www.weather.gov and look around. That's got to be be better then the Teaming Millions.

[LSLGuy]

The only part I'm mystified about is why anyone would want snow. It's one of the greatest plagues on this planet & the sooner it's gone the happier we'll be. Wishing for snow is like wishing for mosquitoes. Just doesn't make sense.

[FourPaws]

The only part I'm mystified about is why anyone would want snow. It's one of the greatest plagues on this planet & the sooner it's gone the happier we'll be. Wishing for snow is like wishing for mosquitoes. Just doesn't make sense.

I love snow. Hate mosquitoes. I ice fish, plow, skate. Snow is fun.


As I always say, you can always put more clothes on if you're cold. You can only take so much off before you're arrested :)

[thelurkinghorror]

Northern Nevada is not good for snow right now, it was even rather hot today. FWIW, Heavenly ski resort claims that they will open Thanksgiving weekend, but still pushed their opening back.

[Faruiza]

ummmmm...i really have to wonder why you think an international message board would have better info than a TV station would have.
Because I look at weather sites already, and most of them have no information on probability more than a week out. Sometimes a member of the teeming millions is familliar with a particular area within a few states and can give anecdotal information that while maybe not entirely helpful, is nice for the possibility of a quirky regional story. Maybe someone that lives say, up by Mt. Shasta can say, well, we usually get our first snow around a particular time, and the weather has been ramping up to look like something or another. Where I come from, we don't really GET weather, so I have no basis for comparison on what to look for, whereas someone in Tahoe will sometimes just know what's probably on the horizon.
I guess I'm looking for the farmer's almanac kind of thing. Meteorologists are only so accurate on their own, and having information from many different sources helps round out the picture.
Not to mention the fact that it's General Questions. That's what we do in this forum...or hadn't you heard?
Send me a box of snow, Athena! :D
Turns out that we can't leave this week after all. Running a new business puts a crimp in my damn lifestyle.

[Twoflower]

I just found what may be the ultimate "how to find snow" website, so I had to share:

You can view a list of snow depths at USDA automated reporting stations at weather underground (http://www.wunderground.com/StateSnowDepth.asp?state=CA) , and they even have a map (http://www.wunderground.com/StateSnowDepth.asp?state=CA) of snow depths across the US!

[BJMoose]

Ya want snow? Come to Wichita - we have a frickin blizzard going on right now. . . .


Truth is, precise snow forecasts are difficult - the recipe is so precise that small variables make a huge difference. I've long said that the best time to predict how much snow will fall in a particular location is two hours after the snow stops falling.

[Satellite^Guy]

Truth is, precise snow forecasts are difficult - the recipe is so precise <snip>...

If the recipe is so precice, then northern Alberta is one hell of a cook... :p we got plenty of the stuff up here... mind you, not nearly as much as back east, in New Brunswick, for example...

S^G

[Philster]

All you can do is stack the odds in your favor via choice of destination, but nothing is guaranteed.

[elfkin477]

The only part I'm mystified about is why anyone would want snow. It's one of the greatest plagues on this planet & the sooner it's gone the happier we'll be. Wishing for snow is like wishing for mosquitoes. Just doesn't make sense. I agree with you. Being against snow is part of why I'm a republican ;)

If the OP wants snow, the OP ought to come to Northern New England where it's been snowing twice-three times a week all month. We've so much more snow than usual that it puts us at the what is considered the normal level for the end January, so the weathermen lovingly say. Jerks.


Instead of starting a new thread about snow, I think I'll ask the question I wanted here: does anyone know of a website that keeps track of seasonal snowfall amounts/region? I'm mostly looking for a site that lists the storm date(s) and the amount, or even a simple running tally "this storm puts __ at 27" since October 1st" sort of thing. Occasionally the weather folks will tell us how much we actually got in the latest storm, but hearing them say it is hit or miss at best.

[BJMoose]

If the recipe is so precice, then northern Alberta is one hell of a cook... :p we got plenty of the stuff up here... mind you, not nearly as much as back east, in New Brunswick, for example...

S^G
Oh, Canada. I think this time of year snow is the only thing on the menu there. . . .

elfkin: You can probably find the data you want on NOAA's NWS website somewhere, but it's probably spread all over the place (since I despise snow I don't go looking for it and can't say if they have any snow-only pages; they might). And most folks who take government data and reformat it usually want to be paid for their effort.

[whiterabbit]

You could come up to Ketchum, Idaho. Finding a room might be tricky, finding an affordable room might be more so (it's expensive around here compared to pretty much any other small town I've ever heard of) but we have snow all right. And we're supposed to get more tomorrow. There ought to be about a foot on the ground come Christmas Day.

I love snow!

[Sunspace]

Oh, Canada. I think this time of year snow is the only thing on the menu there. . . .We also have ice. :)

[BJMoose]

We also have ice. :)
And you may keep it.

[Will Repair]

How far are you willing to drive? Somewhere at a high altitude like Denver might have snow.

While one of my favorite remembrances of Denver is a Thunder, Lightning, and Snow Storm, I do believe that traveling a few miles west of Denver, when the Rockies come into view, will convince one of the lowly flatness that is Denver .

[elfkin477]

Oh, Canada. I think this time of year snow is the only thing on the menu there. . . .

elfkin: You can probably find the data you want on NOAA's NWS website somewhere, but it's probably spread all over the place (since I despise snow I don't go looking for it and can't say if they have any snow-only pages; they might). And most folks who take government data and reformat it usually want to be paid for their effort.
Thanks for the tip. If anyone else was wondering, I found the answer to my question here (http://www.nws.noaa.gov/pa/climate_data.php) on the NOAA site - actual instructions on how to find what I was looking for on their site. Now I can accurately complain that we've gotten 3 feet of snow since December 1st. Lousy snow...