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Very difficult to say with any certainty; I'm sure it varies wildly from winter to winter. For example in Edmonton we had no snowpack to speak of in 2015-2016. Having lived in Lethbridge in Southern Alberta I can tell you for sure there's no reliable snowpack there whatsoever so I'm sure the same applies for Great Falls.
Many areas that don't have persistent snowpack (as in not seeing any grass for 2-3 months) will have snow that regularly comes and goes, and sometimes stick around for fairly long periods. And for months at a time during colder, snowier winters.
In these places, even if there is no snow or little snow fairly regularly during the winter, snow is still no big deal.
Most of Upstate New York is like this. The Boston area is also like this. As are some parts of southern Ontario in Canada.
Very difficult to say with any certainty; I'm sure it varies wildly from winter to winter. For example in Edmonton we had no snowpack to speak of in 2015-2016. Having lived in Lethbridge in Southern Alberta I can tell you for sure there's no reliable snowpack there whatsoever so I'm sure the same applies for Great Falls.
That's surprising about those two locations. I learned something new! Though, I suppose the Chinook winds have something to do with that, no?
The forecast for Lethbridge (per Wunderground) only calls for two days with a high below freezing, and highs up to 44 on the warmest day. No snow in the forecast, but even if it fell, it would melt under those conditions.
Alberta in general has an interesting climate. Lethbridge has a record high of 71F in February, but a record low of 26F in June.
So, do you all have issues with the snow melting, then re-freezing overnight, causing black ice? That's some scary stuff. I've always thought it would be better to live in an area with a bona fide snowpack and very cold temperatures as opposed to a place like Kansas, where winter is a cycle of melting and re-freezing.
I am admittedly not an expert on winter weather, but it does fascinate me, in no small part due to being from a region that doesn't see much of it. I have read that a monthly average of 26F is the general rule for snowpack maintenance. If so, I'm going with a line that goes roughly from Lincoln, NE to the Iowa/Missouri border, to Bloomington, IL, to Kokomo, IN, to Mansfield, OH. Or, to make it simple - the 40th parallel North.
40°N is too far south for the east coast; NYC would be north of that line even Philadelphia. Both of which are more enough not snow covered in the winter.
Assuming Christmas isn't too different from a typical winter day. A White Christmas map may answer the question. Christmas is usually slightly milder and less snowy than a month later, more so in the Northeast but not the Midwest. A place that has a 60%+ chance of snowcover on Christmas probably has snow on the ground much of the winter
I think that the consensus, the simple answer, is this:
Divide the continental U.S. into thirds. The northern third is a pretty safe bet for persistent snowpack all or most of the winter (taking into account the moderating effects of oceans - Brookings, Oregon and coastal Connecticut are in the northern third, but of course they do not maintain a persistent snowpack).
The middle third has on again, off again snowpack, with periods of brown and white, but probably more brown. The snow cover can stick around for a while during particularly cold winters.
In the southern third, snow - if there is any - generally is light and melts within a day or two. Of course, elevation can have something to say about this - see Boone, NC, Cloudcroft, NM, Clingmans Dome in TN/NC, etc.
That's surprising about those two locations. I learned something new! Though, I suppose the Chinook winds have something to do with that, no?
The forecast for Lethbridge (per Wunderground) only calls for two days with a high below freezing, and highs up to 44 on the warmest day. No snow in the forecast, but even if it fell, it would melt under those conditions.
Alberta in general has an interesting climate. Lethbridge has a record high of 71F in February, but a record low of 26F in June.
So, do you all have issues with the snow melting, then re-freezing overnight, causing black ice? That's some scary stuff. I've always thought it would be better to live in an area with a bona fide snowpack and very cold temperatures as opposed to a place like Kansas, where winter is a cycle of melting and re-freezing.
No real chinooks in Edmonton but Lethbridge is the epicenter of chinook county.
El Nino is what made 2015-2016 so warm in Edmonton. And yes, the constant melting and refreezing made the roads quite treacherous.
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