First snow of the season falls on Mount Mansfield. When can Burlington expect some snow?

April Fisher, Burlington Free Press

Vermont's tallest peak, Mount Mansfield, saw its first snowfall of the season on Oct. 22.

Snowfall accumulated to about one inch near the mountain's summit at 3,700 feet, said meteorologist Robert Haynes of the National Weather Service.

The average day of Mount Mansfield's first snowfall is Oct. 16, making this year's snowfall slightly later than normal, Haynes said.

The National Weather Service's Snow Stake records snowfall levels at 3,700 feet of elevation atop Mount Mansfield in Underhill.
The National Weather Service's Snow Stake records snowfall levels at 3,700 feet of elevation atop Mount Mansfield in Underhill.

Mount Mansfield's first snowfall typically falls within around four to five days of Oct. 16, but has come as late as Nov. 9 in 1985 and 1986.

First snow in Burlington

The average day of Burlington's first snowfall is Nov. 17 — about a month after Mount Mansfield's. There is a 40-50% chance of temperatures in Vermont being lower than normal next week, according to the Climate Prediction Cetner.

"There is a shot of colder air that's expected to arrive towards the beginning of next week," Haynes said. "If it's not too dry we could feasibly see maybe some snowflakes towards the end of month — maybe in time for Halloween."

The view from Mt. Mansfield's Sunset Ridge Trail, looking east. Mt. Mansfield is Vermont's highest peak at 4,395 feet.
The view from Mt. Mansfield's Sunset Ridge Trail, looking east. Mt. Mansfield is Vermont's highest peak at 4,395 feet.

How cold will winter be this year?

Despite the chances of a Halloween flurry, this winter is overall expected to be warmer than usual, Haynes said.

A warmer winter in the coming months would be following the trend of the warmer-than-usual year so far. This year has brought Burlington's warmest April, fourth warmest January, and fourth warmest September on record, according to a National Weather Service report. This year's past winter was Burlington's third warmest on record.

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The warmer weather expected for this coming winter can be traced to climate change, as well as El Niño climate patterns, Haynes said.

This year has also been wetter than usual, with Burlington receiving 4.25 inches of precipitation above the average to-date, and Montpelier receiving 5.81 inches above the average, according to Haynes.

Contact April Fisher at amfisher@freepressmedia.com. Follow her on Twitter: @AMFisherMedia

This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Vermont winter weather predictions after Mount Mansfield's first snow

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