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I saw Snoqualmie Pass around 3000 ft was completely covered but it was well above freezing around 600 ft in eastern suburbia Issaquah Highlands. Done that drive a few times, odd to see that much difference.
Southern Patagonia is a stunningly visual example of this "snow shadow", mainly for those brave and skilled enough to climb its major peaks and watch it all from the top.
This is standing over cerro Torre famous spire summit. Looking west, the southern ice field, with perhaps 300 snowy days a year, maybe more:
Then looking east, you can see in the far right the end of the tree line and the start of the cold patagonian desert:
The Snowies, which are part of the Australian Alps mountain range in southeastern Australia. Although they're not that tall by world's standards - The highest peak is at 2,228 m (7,310 ft) above sea. Still, the region, especially the higher peaks, get a lot of snowfall in the winter. Snow is also not unheard of in the summer as well.
Sequim and Port Angeles benefit greatly from the Olympic Range rain shadow effect during the usual rainfall events when the flow is from the west. However, cold outbreaks are generally associated with the dreaded "Fraser outflow" northeasterlies and Sequim is suddenly on the windward side of the mountains receiving enhanced snowfall.
Check out what happened in Sequim in February 2019 for a very dramatic example of how this can work.
Not sure what you mean by shut down. It is mostly where road cross over mountains that they might shut down due to blizzards - blowing snow.
Do schools and offices close more often then central Norway where it's more common for snow? It says Western Norway doesn't receive much snow: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Norway#Winter so I wonder how they react to it when it does happen much like Western Washington?
Pacific Northwest for sure. British Columbia/SE Alaska/WA/OR. Nothing at sea level in Seattle and 300+ inches of snow on the ground at snoqualmie pass. I remember visiting there one summer and there was still 3-5 feet of snow on the ground in July just outside Seattle in the mountains.
Do schools and offices close more often then central Norway where it's more common for snow? It says Western Norway doesn't receive much snow: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Norway#Winter so I wonder how they react to it when it does happen much like Western Washington?
Can't remember hearing schools and offices closed to snow...
We probably have better infrastructure to handle a snowfall.
Pretty much all places in Western Norway are close to higher ground (except Stavanger where you need 1 hr drive), and moving to just 400-500 m ASL, you have lots of snow in winter. In Bergen, you can take the Fløibanen funicular and in a few minutes you have ski tracks at Fløyen, 400 m ASL. https://www.floyen.no/en/floibanen/
Higher ground is close by in almost all areas, so the difference in snow accumulaton is easy to see.
Also is the case in Trondheim. Can be 30 cm / a feet of snow on the ground in the residential areas in the city hills (about 150-250 m ASL) while it is nothing down at sea level, which is only a few km away.
Last edited by Jakobsli; 11-11-2021 at 03:58 PM..
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