Winter Weather Arrived In Vermont As Expected. Roads Lousy

Just as predicted, I woke up to about an inch of new
snow in St. Albans, Vermont. So did most of the
rest of the state. Slick roads this morning!

 Just as expected, a burst of snow swept into most of Vermont early this morning. 

At dawn, or around 6:30 a.m. it appeared it was snowing everywhere except some of the valleys of far southern Vermont, where a cold rain was falling. The winter weather advisory is accurate, so you'll need to deal with icky weather this morning for sure. 

Mixed precipitation in New York State was spreading rapidly toward Vermont, so expect some sleet and freezing rain. 

As of 7 a.m. roads  pretty much everywhere were slick, judging from Vermont Agency of Transportation traffic cameras. Road crews are out. I hear them everywhere around my place in St. Albans. As expected, bridges and overpasses looked the worst. That said, there was black ice most anywhere on the roads

Reports of crashes are piling up across Vermont. Interstate 89 southbound in Georgia was closed for a time due to crashes. At last report at 7 a.m., one lane had re-opened. Expect more delays on the roads through this morning. 

You will need to leave early to get to work on time, and you will need to take it easy. 

I also see a lot of schools in and around Vermont have delayed openings, and a few are closed today. You'll want to check with your local districts to see what's going on for you. 

These delayed openings are a good idea, as conditions should start to improve as the morning goes along. 

Radar from the National Weather Service office in South Burlington as of 6:30 a.m. showed the steady snow would soon transition to showery stuff. As the morning wears on, sometimes it will be snowing, sleeting, or raining, with some ice, other times it won't be doing anything at all.

Periods of freezing rain are still a threat  through this morning. Some places, especially in the Champlain Valley might make a clean change from snow to rain without bothering with the ice. Other areas are in for up to a tenth of an inch of freezing rain.  

These breaks in the precipitation coming in are good, because it might allow road crews to really get on top of everything.  Temperatures are starting to go up, so the Champlain Valley should be above freezing my mid morning. Those above freezing temperatures should spread through the rest of Vermont during the late morning and early afternoon. 

Until then, watch out on those roads. And underfoot with that fresh dusting of snow and ice. 

The winter weather advisory is set to expire at 1 p.m. today. 

That's not to say the rest of the day will be nice. Far from it. It will stay cloudy, and winds will pick up from the south.  We'll still be dealing with light showers of cold rain, snow, and maybe sleet most of the day.

High temperatures today will come later than usual, probably after sunset. By then, it should be near 40 degrees. So not exactly toasty. 

Gusts will reach 35 mph or even a little more in some spots. Normally a tenth of an inch of ice on trees and wires isn't anything to worry about. But if the ice remains when the wind picks up, that could be enough to cause a few isolated power outages later this morning and early afternoon.

By the way, winds will be particularly strong on Lake Champlain. Duck hunters take note: This is NOT the day to go out on Lake Champlain.  Wave heights could reach five or six feet during the peak of the winds early this afternoon. Tomorrow will be better, I promise. 

LOOKING AHEAD

After our early taste of winter, things should definitely quiet down for the next few days. Friday features clouds and a few showers. It will be the warmest day we'll have for a little while, with highs in the mid 40s.

Cold, quiet weather should last through the weekend and into the beginning of next week. That means highs in the 30s and lows in the 20s, with teens in the cold spots. It'll turn a little warmer by mid week. 

Very little, if any snow or rain is in the forecast Saturday through Wednesday.