Farmer’s Almanac Predicts “Flip-Flop” Winter For Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin
The Farmer’s Almanac claims to have an 80% accuracy rate which is pretty good considering how far out they forecast. They recently released their long-term forecast for our region which predicts how the weather will be from now all the way through April.
When I saw the Farmer’s Almanac was calling for a “flip-flop” winter I got a little excited because when I think of flip-flops, I think of warm weather. Unfortunately, that’s not what they meant. Read what a “Flip-Flop” winter is below.
How Much Does It Cost to Clear Minnesota Roads During Winter?
The Minnesota Department of Transportation just released a report that shows nearly $116 million dollars was spent during the 2020-2021 winter clearing the roads.
Minnesotans Vote To Name The Newest Snowplows
MnDOT launched a “Name a Snowplow” contest and thousands of suggestions were submitted by the public. Over 120,000 people voted to select the winning names. See those here.
Farmer’s Almanac’s “Flip-Flop” Prediction For Minnesota Winter
Managing Editor Sandi Duncan told our sister station, WJON, that we should have a long fall because winter will take its time getting here.
Duncan said the “Flip” comes in January, “January is kind of weird because it starts off not that bad but then gets very stormy in January. In fact, we have a blizzard predicted from January 20th through the 23rd. And then February is where the cold comes in.”
The flop comes later when we’re counting down the days until spring. Duncan says, “Unfortunately, March looks very stormy. We're actually calling for some stormy conditions in the middle of the month and the unusual thing is if you look even further ahead in April, we're calling for possible late-season blizzard across the region. SO, winter is going to hang on.”
Overall the extended forecast calls for average snowfall in our region and colder than normal temperatures, especially in February and March.