After this week's return to wintry weather, I felt like I should issue a formal apology for my last post. I wrote about how it was a rather mild and snowless winter. Mother Nature apparently took notice and replied with a "challenge accepted."
According to some weather observations posted by the National Weather Service office in Pittsburgh, Franklin received between 2 to 3 inches early Tuesday morning. A report from Tionesta stated that the area had seen around 4 inches of snow. Here in Pinegrove Township, I believed we got at least 3 inches. However, it was hard to tell as the wind created drifts in various areas. Nonetheless, it provided enough snow for Clem, the bloodhound, to dump, Gus, the St. Bernard, into.
With only days left until the calendar declares it's spring on March 20, the snowfall seemed like a slap in the face to those of us waiting for warmer weather. It was especially hurtful because of the mild February weather. The stats for February, according to data on the National Weather Service's website, recorded that Franklin only had 1.3 inches of snow for the month and at least two 68-degree days. So far for March, we have dumped on February's total. As of March 15, it was reported that Franklin had a total of 4.2 inches of snow and only one 64-degree day so far.
    | According to the National Weather service, Pittsburgh also had exceeded its February snow totals. A day before the "big snow", the office posted on March 14 that "We just measured a quick 0.4 inches of snow with the band here at the office. That brings our daily snow total to 0.6 inches. For perspective, that's three times our entire February monthly snowfall." Of course, according to reports, Pittsburgh added at least another inch to that total on March 15. Nonetheless, these totals were nothing compared to the Blizzard of 1993. Monday, March 13, marked the 30th anniversary of the storm. The National Weather Service office in Pittsburgh put things in context by posting "since November 2022, we've measured 14.6 inches of snow for this 2022-2023 season. On March 13, 1993, we measured 23.6 inches of snow in a single day, which is the longstanding record for maximum one-day snowfall for Pittsburgh. Nearby Latrobe, Pa., recorded 36 inches with ten-foot drifts!". More information on the storm can be found at this site. However, the office offered a more hopeful post on Wednesday, March 15. "According to @NWSCPC, we should expect normal to below normal temperature, and above normal precipitation", the post said of the eight to 14-day weather outlook. Yet, a post on Friday mentioned possible snow showers in the future. Nonetheless, the calendar marches toward next Monday, the first day of spring. |
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Some of my photos from 2020 and 2012 showed that there were crocuses out in the yard and even tadpoles in the neighbor's pond. In contrast, this year only a few crocus leaves have emerged and the pond still has ice cover.
Meanwhile, a trail camera photo from last year shows that this year has followed suit as far as snow cover in March.
Although, an extra hour of daylight in the evening, has been a bit of a blessing. The sun actually showed up on a few occasions. In fact, by Thursday, March 16, the temperature had climbed to 52 degrees and most of the snow was melting. This was a little disappointing to at least four canines who rather enjoy romping in the white stuff.
  | As the temperatures warmed, I hoped that the pair of Canada geese that I had seen at the pond last weekend would return once the water opened up again. I wasn't the only one bird watching. My husband decided that Lil' Bit, the cat, needed a window feeder so he could view the birds close up. So far the feeder's been a hit. No birds have hit the window, because I don't do windows. However, Lil' Bit has jumped at the window a couple of times after the birds on the other side of the panes. We may need to purchase him a helmet. Birds visiting the feeder included those of the smaller variety. Titmice, chickadees, goldfinches and nuthatches have been the ones to tryout the new feeder. Some of our summer returnees to the bird feeder included grackles, red-winged blackbirds and European starlings. Currently some of our winter birds like dark-eyed juncos and American tree sparrows are still hanging around. |
"Are we done with the snow?," was a question I asked myself. I even hesitated to write about a possible warmup for fear of retaliation from Mother Nature. That's just the nature of things 'round here.
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