While heavy rain drenches the Washington region and much of the Mid-Atlantic, it’s cold enough for a picturesque blanket of snow in the high elevations of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
So much snow is falling that the National Weather Service has issued a winter storm warning through 10 p.m. Thursday for both the Northern Virginia and Central Virginia Blue Ridge.
The warning calls for up to six inches of snow. Some areas appear to have exceeded that number.
Wintergreen ski resort, for example, has picked up eight inches, according to Richmond broadcast meteorologist Andrew Freiden.
Wintergreen’s webcam shows a beautiful scene as big, fat flakes clung to tree limbs. The snow is timely arriving just before the resort reopens its slopes for one final weekend (Friday through Sunday).
The webcams at Big Meadows (elevation 3,500 feet) in Shenandoah National Park also reveal a very snowy scene.
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The snow is mostly an issue at elevations above 3,000 feet. Below that, primarily rain is falling.
Through early afternoon, between half an inch and an inch of rain had fallen in the Washington region as temperatures hovered in the 40s.
Yet a drive about 100 miles to the west, ascending 3,000 feet, is all that is necessary to be transported to a winter wonderland. The 10- to 15-degree drop in temperature makes all the difference.
If you’re yearning for spring snow and can’t travel, just think back to one year ago, when Washington saw its biggest snow of the “winter” on the first day of spring. Four inches fell in the city.
Correction: The original version of this report stated Wintergreen’s ski slopes are closed for the season. The resort plans to reopen for skiing this Friday through Sunday for one final weekend this season. This report has been updated.
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