What to expect for Vermont’s first wintry storm of the season

Have you gotten your winter tires on yet? Vermonters may want them as the Thursday morning drive to work and school could be slick.

The National Weather Service Burlington office reports a winter weather advisory will be in effect for all of Vermont Wednesday night through Thursday morning.

“While accumulations will be light, plan on slippery conditions, which will likely affect Thursday morning’s commute,” the weather service said in a social media post.

Season’s first wintery storm

This is expected to be the first wintry storm of the season. A tenth of an inch of snow or less was forecasted for much of Vermont starting Wednesday night and into pre-dawn Thursday, but ice in trace amounts to a couple of tenths of an inch thick is possible. In the Champlain Valley, warming above freezing may turn precipitation into rain around 7 or 8 a.m. Freezing rain and sleet are possible, but more so for the Adirondacks and southern Vermont. Ice accretion, where ice forms quickly upon contact, is the biggest concern for motorists. Road surface temperatures were predicted to rise above freezing between 9 and 10 a.m.

“We are focusing on elevated surfaces for most likely spots of impact/slippery driving conditions, particularly before 10AM,” the weather service wrote in its forecasters discussion about the impact on motorists.

Low temperatures were expected to be in the upper teens to upper 20s overnight in some areas, but in the Champlain Valley low 30s with wind chills in the 20s was predicted for overnight and early morning.

Early start to winter weather

Snowfall in Vermont has come a little sooner in the valley than in recent years. The Champlain Valley received its first snowfall on Nov. 1. Killington Ski Resort, which is often the first Vermont resort to open for ski season, opened Nov. 3 this year. This is the earliest ski season has begun since 2019, which started on the same date. For comparison, last year Killington’s first day was Nov. 17.

The first mountain snowfall of the season on Oct. 22, was about a week behind schedule. And, the first frost in Burlington made a record for lateness this year, happening on Oct. 31.

Contact reporter April Barton at abarton@freepressmedia.com or 802-660-1854. Follow her on Twitter @aprildbarton.