Dreaming of a white Christmas? Here is the Farmers’ Almanac’s Christmas forecast for Boise
If you asked Santa for a white Christmas in Boise, you might just get what you want.
The Farmers’ Almanac Christmas predictions forecast has arrived for Dec. 24 to Dec. 27, and it’s a mixed bag across the United States.
For many states, rain showers are in order rather than snow, and Boise is right on the cusp.
What is a white Christmas?
English writer Charles Dickens first popularized the idea of a “white Christmas” through his famous 1843 classic “A Christmas Carol.” A snow-covered Christmas is the backdrop to Ebenezer Scrooge’s ghostly visits of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come.
The song “White Christmas” by Irving Berlin and Bing Crosby was then recorded in 1942 and has been played in households across the country every year since, cementing the idea in popular culture.
The National Weather Service defines a white Christmas as having at least one inch of snow on the ground.
According to weather data from 1981 to 2010, Boise has about a 26-40% chance of a white Christmas, marking it as one of the lowest chances in Idaho — the rest of the state is near a 100% chance.
The Treasure Valley’s lower chances of a white Christmas come because mountain ranges both to the north and south block precipitation from entering the valley and force in drier air.
So what about this year?
The Farmers’ Almanac groups Idaho in the Northwest region alongside Oregon and Washington.
“Stormy greetings to you,” the Almanac predicts. “Christmas storms, especially along the Coastal Plain.”
Of course, Idaho is much farther inland than along the coastal plain of Oregon and Washington. Looking at the Climate Prediction Center’s long-range forecast for Dec. 21 to 27, Boise has a 40-50% chance of below-average temperatures and a 33-40% chance of above-average precipitation.
Both stats lean in favor of snow around Christmas and is further backed up by the fact that the U.S. is in a La Niña weather pattern, which typically results in above-average snowfall for the Treasure Valley.
Repeated heavy snowstorms over the central Idaho mountains have ensured a white Christmas already for much of Idaho, but it can be considered a coin flip whether Boise will live up to Charles Dickens’ and Bing Crosby’s idea of a white Christmas this year.
Traveling for Christmas?
Not going to be in Boise for Christmas, and want to know what the chances of a white Christmas are for your destination? Here’s what the Farmers’ Almanac predicts for other areas of the United States.
NORTHEAST AND NEW ENGLAND
New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Washington D.C.
“Sorry snow lovers — your Christmas weather looks more wet than white! Showers in time for Christmas, then turning fair, colder.”
GREAT LAKES, OHIO VALLEY
Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, Wisconsin
“Merry mushy Christmas! Christmas weather: turning milder with a few showers of wet snow, rain.”
SOUTHEAST
Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Florida
“Move over holiday sweaters — you may need holiday umbrellas instead! Showers for Christmas.”
NORTH CENTRAL
Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana
“White Christmas? Maybe! Snow over Rockies, Plains in time for Christmas.”
SOUTH CENTRAL
Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico
“Christmas snow in northern New Mexico; farther south and east, lower New Mexico, Texas, Mississippi Valley see rain.”
SOUTHWEST
California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona
“Stormy, especially along the California coast.”
