HARDWICK – What a week of racking up the white stuff. It started with a burst of mixed precipitation on Thursday that left us with two to five inches of snow and sleet, before a nice break in the action for Friday.
photo by Paul Fixx
The heaviest snowfall of the season arrived this weekend, in a somewhat split fashion. The leading edge of warm air dropped upwards of half a foot of snow on the ground by daybreak Sunday, with the deepening of low pressure near the coast leading to another several inches of snow by later morning. A dry slot arrived while things were warming up slightly, before precipitation turned back to snow for the evening.
The yardstick that measures the snow depth in the backyard in East Hardwick is practically gone at this point. Several areas picked up around a foot of snow with this system. Snowfall amounts include the following reports:
Walden: 17”; Greensboro: 15.3”; Woodbury: 12.0”; Craftsbury Common: 10.4”; Plainfield: 8.8” and Cabot: 7.3”.
As this low continues to pull away from North America, cold air is being funneled down from Canada and the polar jet stream actually sits across the mid-Atlantic region. This will conveniently deflect the next low pressure system to our south, with just a chance of a passing snow shower Thursday evening as some moisture approaches from the west.
Winds will pick up from the north on Friday as the low pressure moves off the coast and an approaching dome of high pressure increases the pressure gradient. This will come with highs in the teens and lows around zero, with wind chills in the teens below zero by Friday night. Much of the weekend see us largely under the influence of this high pressure, with slowly moderating temperatures. A shortwave crossing north of us on Saturday night might bring a few snow showers that may linger a bit into Sunday, but that will be balanced with periods of sunshine. No big storms are in sight, a welcome week for anyone who had to endure hours of shoveling from the last few events. Here is the forecast for the next five days:
Wednesday: Mostly sunny. High: 15. Low: -2.
Thursday: Partly sunny. Increasing clouds with scattered snow showers by evening. High: 21. Low: 5.
Friday: Partly sunny. High: 17. Low: 0.
Saturday: A mix of sun and clouds. Scattered snow showers. High: 24. Low: 12.
Sunday: Partly sunny. Isolated mountain snow showers. High: 31. Low: 13.
Tyler is our weather reporter and a community journalist. He works as a nurse and EMT, volunteers with Hardwick Rescue and helps to train new EMTs.
