Last Post of the Season (17-18)...We Hope

It's April 29th and this has to be our last snow alert for the season, right?

The National Weather Service has issued a Special Weather Statement warning us about the potential for up to 4 inches of snow in high elevation towns in Northern Berkshire County.

With temps in the mid-30s in most locations and a few degrees colder in places above 2000 feet, we could see a measurable snowfall this evening in a few towns. The roads should be warm enough to prevent the snow from accumulating there, but grassy surfaces could see 2-3 inches of heavy wet snow.

Last map of the season?

Fortunately, because it has been so ridiculously cool this early spring, there are no leaves or buds on trees, so this snow will not lead to downed branches and power outages.

With 70-degree temps expected for the rest of the week, this threat probably will bring with it the last flakes of the season.

It's really been a great snow season, and keep your eyes open for a long-range forecast for 2018-19 at some point this summer.

Ice Storm Alert

Happy Vacation, all you public school folks. You made it.

Unfortunately, we have bad news to kick off the week. We have a Winter Weather Advisory in place for Saturday afternoon and throughout the day on Sunday. There is a chance for up to half an inch of sleet plus an extra layer of freezing rain on top. That's sounds awful.

The good news is that the NWS errs on the side of caution with these kinds of storms, and they miss more often than they hit. Still, it's worth being very aware that driving conditions could be hazardous for a twenty-four period starting tomorrow afternoon. Even if we don't get the ice, we're in store for many hours of cold rain.

Thanks, NWS Albany. This may not look bad, but it could get worse.

Saturday night sounds like a good time to get to that Netflix series you've been holding off on as the roads might not be a lot of fun to drive on.

Hopefully, this mess will miss us, but your radar should be up for slick travel conditions Saturday night and during the day on Sunday.

We'll have more if the forecast takes a turn for the worst.

Snow For Friday

It's a pretty simple forecast for tomorrow: the further north and higher you go, the more snow you will see. Everyone should see a period of snow in the morning. Lower elevation towns will not see much (if any) accumulation. You might get an inch (or a little more) on grassy surfaces but the roads should be okay.

The eastern hilltowns of the county should see closer to 3 inches, and then the big winners will be Clarksburg, Savoy, and Florida who could see close to 5 inches.

Snow should start between 7 and 10 AM and the changeover to rain will occur for some as early as 1 PM. All in all, it will be wet snow day with some slippery roads in the afternoon and early evening in those aforementioned northern and eastern hilltowns.

Thanks, NWS Albany.

The Sunday storm looks like it is going out to sea, so that's good for those who are anti-winter at this point of the year (justifiably so).

Still, the collective GSD eyeball is wide open and focused on this Monday/Tuesday snow storm. We continue to hear that it will be an all-snow event and the only question is: will it be moderate or heavy snow?

Drive safely tomorrow, and we'll be able tell you more this weekend if there really is a chance for a snow day on Tuesday or not. We're not firm believers yet, but the conditions are too good for us to dismiss it.

Snow Maps For Friday & Sunday

It's highly likely that we'll see enough snow to cover the ground on Friday. The snow should begin around the time of the morning commute and last into the evening hours. There will likely be a changeover to sleet and freezing rain and all rain for the southern portions of Berkshire County at some point in the afternoon or evening.

From our friends at New England Cable News

The ride to school should be fine on Friday, but drivers will need to exercise caution Friday afternoon upon their return. Based on our observations, it's unlikely that any games scheduled for Friday will take place.

The Sunday storm that we briefly mentioned earlier in the day could nudge its way into southern Berkshire county on Sunday morning. This storm has much more energy associated with it, and it does have the potential to blossom into something more potent. At this point we think South County will see a period of snow that melts right away, but the potential for 3-4 inches of wet snow is within the realm of possibility.

 

A glancing blow for South County for Sunday? (NECN)

A more optimistic map for the Sunday storm. (Accuweather)

And if we're going to get one more snow day this winter, it will be Tuesday. The models are now more in agreement, and the timing looks very good for precipitation to begin after midnight on Monday. It's still too early to tell just how much snow we'll get, but enough pieces are in place for a sizable storm.

For those of you who have just about had it with winter in general, the long-range maps are showing a warm-up for the second half of April. When we get back from April vacation, things should look more normal around here for this time of year.

No End In Sight

The week after Easter began with snow and it will end with snow.

Expect a snowy day on Friday. The snow will start too late to impact the length of the school day, but we could see a prolonged period of snow throughout the day and into the evening. Most of us will see the grass get re-covered with snow, but higher elevation towns could see slippery roads by the time of the evening commute. It's quite possible we'll get a Winter Weather Advisory from this Alberta Clipper system.

This map shows a 2-4 snowfall fall for the Berkshires for Friday and Friday night.

And then there's the long-range forecast. A few weather insiders say a coastal storm could graze us Saturday into Sunday. We might see an inch or two, especially in South County.

But the big newsmaker is that the models are showing more substantial coastal storm to hit New England somewhere between Monday night and Wednesday. The models are not in agreement at all about the timing of the storm for next week, but they do seem to agree that this storm will bring moderate or heavy precipitation to our area. Over the weekend will focus more on the midweek storm.

It would not be unprecedented to have a snow day this late in April, but it certainly is unusual. Let's not get too ahead of ourselves, but next week's storm bears watching.

Snowy Commute for Monday?

While things have definitely settled down here at the GSD Home Office, we are still seeing snow in the weather headlines for the next few weeks.

Be aware that a coastal storm could graze southern Berkshire County late tonight into tomorrow morning. We should only see a few inches of snow, if the storm develops the way it is supposed to. It's possible but not likely that our southernmost school districts could see a delay.

After this storm comes through (if it comes through), we are looking at a delightfully dreary stretch of New England April weather. Rain, snow showers, temps in the 40s--just perfect conditions for all those Spring athletes champing at the bit to get their seasons started. The warmest day of the week will be Wednesday (mid and upper 50s) but it will be raining; the driest day of the week should be Thursday but it will be cold (upper 30s).

We might make it all the way to April vacation before we see temps consistently in the 50s.

Keep an eye out for snow tonight, and we'll post and tweet if there are any surprise two-hour delays.