Spring is supposed to be just around the corner but it’s definitely not looking like it for most of Northern California. Our region of the state has experienced an extremely cold and wet winter this year, and the weather shows little signs of letting up anytime soon. The constant snow storms and rainfall we’ve experienced is just a reminder of how unpredictable our Northern California winters can be. Read on to see the effect this winter has already had on our state and when we can expect to be out of the woods.
We may be an entire week into March, but spring still seems so far away. With the recent weather we've been experiencing, it's hard to see an end to this awfully wet winter and we may not even be done with the worst of it yet.
Rain and snow have been hitting Northern California non-stop for months on end. In fact, the Sierra Nevada Range was slammed with a snowstorm just earlier this week. After experiencing back-to-back blizzards across much of the Sierra and other higher elevation areas, we're left wondering if this winter will ever end.
Northern California has undeniably experienced a wetter-than-usual winter this year. In the Sierra Nevadas, the average depth of snow is estimated to be around 40 inches this season (with a maximum depth of 200 inches), whereas it was just 23 inches last year. This is the result of many, many snow storms which have produced mass amounts of snow for stretches of up to five days at a time.
And with mass amounts of snow has come humongous amounts of rainfall, which has caused concerns with flooding and even mudslides all over the region. The snowstorm we experienced earlier this week left major flooding in parts of Tuolumne County, with heavy rain causing nearly an inch of precipitation in a single hour at its height.
Even if we don't experience any more gigantic blizzards in the mountains, we can expect plenty of precipitation throughout the lower elevations as the snow levels begin to lower. According to Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson of AccuWeather, "Chilly and unsettled weather can remain the theme in California and most of the West for the middle of March."
This is definitely turning out to be a long winter, but we can't complain considering memories of the recent drought are still fresh in our minds. If a good spring and summer with plenty of water means toughing out some nasty weather for a few more weeks, we'll certainly take it.
What do you think about this wet winter? Are you enjoying it, or are you ready for spring? Tell us your thoughts in the comments. It may still be cold and wet, but it’s never too early to start planning for the nicer weather. Check out our list of 8 Easy And Beautiful Spring Hikes In Northern California for some inspiration!
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