wintertime is here again

So the talking heads have decreed that this will be a harsher winter than usual for the Pacific Northwest, with snow and cold in levels not seen for fifty years. Surprisingly, it looks like they might be right. Not only has it snowed in the mountains enough for several ski resorts to open before Thanksgiving - Crystal and Baker opened last weekend - but it has actually snowed down in the Seattle metro area.


First snow at our house was on Sunday November 21 - it didn't stick around, but it did make the trees look awfully pretty. This will be our tenth winter in Seattle, and this is the first time I think it's snowed at our hose in November.



This morning we were greeted with 25F temperatures and news stories of snow in the city, despite nothing happening at our house yet, so we drove the Subaru into work together. There was indeed plenty of snow downtown already, with the above picture taken from the window of my lab. Note that my work campus is directly on the Puget Sound, so we are at sea level. There was slush on both the 520W - 5S interchange as well as all over the flyover into work, so it is a very good thing we decided to drive instead of ride our motorcycles.



The snow has come and gone in waves, with a good bit on the ground so far although most of the main roads remain clear. I don't expect us to have a problem getting home, although dealing with the rest of the population that has no idea how to drive in snow (or even on wet pavement some days!) might be a challenge. The interesting bit will be if the forecast of a temperature drop into the mid-teens along with 30-40mph winds tonight comes true - that could make tomorrow very interesting!

Welcome, Winter 2010!