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For you snow lovers out there, how much snow is considered acceptable? Would you say 30+ inches qualifies as an acceptable winter, with 50+ qualifying as a "really good" winter? And would you say this past "winter" was a really pathetic attempt by mother nature?
We had 37 inches this winter. That's below average but still better than many other places get in a normal year. However, the constant melting of any snow that fell didn't make it feel like a good winter. I would consider a good winter to have one of the following:
- many big snows that melt quickly (two examples: 10 inches or greater every two weeks or so that usually melts 3-5 days later, or 5-6 inches of snow once a week.)
- be cold enough to have snow on the ground for most of it
- has enough snow falling almost constantly that even though temps are frequently above freezing, it can't melt quickly. One example I can think of is the Niigata area and places to the south and west along Japan's west coast.
I would consider anything over 125 inches a "good" winter, with 60 inches being the lower limit of "acceptable." Anything less than 60 inches or so isn't worth the bother for me, as it'll be marred by periods of slush and ugly brown ground in between snowfalls - might as well as stay here where winter is merely an extension of fall and spring...lol.
I'd consider 50 inches per year to be the threshold for being acceptable. Anything below that is insufficient. 100 inches is my threshold for a really good snow season. The winter thresholds for acceptable and really good depend on the degree of cold. If it meets my high winter threshold, below 25/10F for two months or more, then the acceptable and really good thresholds are unchanged. If it's warmer than that but still enough to maintain a snowpack, then 100 inches or higher is the acceptable threshold for the winter as a whole. If it's warmer than -3C, then even 100 inches makes for a subpar winter. For just snow I can also say that I could agree with NorthStarDelight's limits.
If a place is colder than 25/10F for two months or more, and has more than 100 inches of snow per season, then that's guaranteed to get high marks from me, as long as the averages aren't well below -20F. My dream winter is singles for highs, subzero for lows, no temperatures above freezing, and 200 inches of snow.
I will also say that for the United States as a whole, ex-Alaska, this past "winter" was a sick joke that should be expunged from the page of time.
At least 50 inches, which is what my area received last year. It was a great winter not only because of the amounts, but snow was on the ground for a long period of time.
Hard for me to answer - a good winter is a Casablanca summer
But, yeah, if I'm forced to live in a cold climate, I'd enjoy regular snowfalls instead of crappy cold rain like in Paris or London.
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