Reasons Why This April Snow In The Northland Is A Good Thing

Here we are. April in the Northland, and we keep getting snow.

Even though it isn't abnormal, it is still frustrating. for many people. By mid-March, I feel like most people across Northern Minnesota and Northern Wisconsin are ready to turn the page from winter to springtime.

We often (as we did this year) get little doses of nice temperatures and melting snow to tease us with what's ahead. When April arrives, I feel like we're all conditioned to think snow should be done, even though we know better.

After one winter storm to start the month of April, a second one a day later, and more chances at snow in the following week, I've heard more than one person ask "Why do I live here?" in relation to the wintery weather clinging on in the Northland.

I tend to be someone who finds the the bright side in situations, and so to spread that silver lining outlook with you, here are a couple of good reasons this April snow is something to embrace.

Reasons why this April snow in the Northland s a good thing

REASON 1: Here's probably the most obvious (and important) one: Moisture. You've heard the phrase "April showers bring May flowers", right? Well, it can be rain or snow showers. While we haven't had an extremely limited amount of snow over the winter, we haven't had an extremely snowy winter either.

The extra snow will help with ground moisture. NOAA is thinking this summer could be on the dry side in the Northland, so we should embrace the spring moisture.

REASON 2: The snow cover is keeping ticks and bugs at bay. While some of them have woken up from their slumber on those warm days we've had earlier this season, a fresh blanket of snow is helping prolong their season from fully getting underway.

REASON 3: This one is a little more niche, but there are still quite a few people who appreciate it. The extra snow, bringing the extra moisture I mentioned previously, will also help drive a more impressive waterfall season.

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That snowmelt fuels rivers along the North and South Shores of Lake Superior to make for spectacular, raging waterfalls.

REASON 4: It isn't bound to stay around for long. Even between snow events, we see snow melting. This April snow will be gone before too long.

There's nothing we can do about it, so we may as well find the positive side in it!

The 16 Least Snowy Winters On Record In Duluth History

Since the National Weather Service began keeping weather records in Duluth in the late 1800s, here are the 16 winters with the lowest snowfall totals on historical record.

It is worth noting that the official records from 1941-today have been recorded at the area now known as the Duluth International Airport (away from the lake, on top of the hill). Before then, various locations closer to Lake Superior had been used for official weather recording data. For anyone that knows anything about how Lake Superior and the hill play a role in temperature and snow, you can see how this makes older records inherently different.

While these records note the "least snowy winters", they actually include all seasonal snowfall from July 1 through June 30 of the following year.

Gallery Credit: Nick Cooper - TSM Duluth