Hoe Hoe Ho de door! You must be talkin about Masanutin or sumpin..not the Highest valley east of the Rockies!! Lets set the record straight, starting with a mean temp of 23 degrees & 44 inches of snow for feb.....yes that went downhill for Jan but the valley still managed a mean temp of 32 degrees with 31 inches of snow! About Whitetail's average for the whole year...DUNK!...couldn't resist

Depending on the circumstances...inversion among other things etc...or even on some "normal" circumstances there could be more than 5 degrees of difference between Davis and the Valley...seen it myself dozens of times atleast. Sometimes during the winter(or any time of the year really) there's even 10 degrees difference in temperature between the bottom of the valley and the top of cabin mountain or Davis. I've been out when it was inverted so much, one of those mornings where the smoke from the chimneys barely seems to rise above the roof tops, that it was 20 degrees at the bottom of the timberline and 35 degrees at the top. It's hard to say anything is "usually" about the weather but five degrees colder in the valley than in Davis sounds like a probable situation to me...and besides I say bring it on if it means snow!!!

Inversion would never lead to snow in the valley and rain at higher elevations. Freezing rain at the lower elevation is about all you could hope for if the precip was rain at the higher elevations.

Cool graph...I was just using the case of inversion as an example of extreme temperature variations in the area...If it was raining in davis and snowing in the valley or if it was five degrees colder in the valley than in Davis it wouldn't be inversion anyway. THe elevation in the valley is higher than the elevation in Davis. Either way let it snow I say!....NOw that I think about it there is precipitation event that is common in the valley where you can have snow at lower elevations and not a higher during inversion situations......Snowguns/Snowmaking. Right???


Hey Guru, in your proffesional opinion let me ask you this ..what do you think of the validity of these sayings/theories/tales...

dry cricks in the fall=cold winter/lots'o'snow

more black than white woolybugger=cold winter/lots'o'snow

weak hurricane season=cold winter lots'o'snow

does this last one indicate el nino vs la nina pattern

I threw the 5 degree figure in there as a average not taking in the inversion factor. Under normal circumstances, through my 15 years of being a regular to the valley, the valley is cooler than Davis due to the elevation there. The ridges can be considerably colder. All I want to see for the season is a gradual cooling through November with temps falling into the 30's for highs and the upper teens for lows and staying there. Come December, I'd like to see several heavy, deep snows which will pack down and create the type of base which could last all winter making both back country and alpineskiers happy. Come January and February, how about an average snowfall of 10-12" a week with an occasional dump for freshies! By mid March, I'd like to see lots of sunshine and blue sky with an occasional snow to keep things looking and skiing fresh. Now if only the world were perfect......

Davis and the valley are very similar in my experience. I compare the CV observer temps to mine here in Davis and its amazingly close. Davis' elevation is 3100-3200 feet, while the valley is 3200-3300 feet. You may be talking about some of the higher ridges though.

Is the Davis station at Canaan Heights? That's around 3700 feet.

I was in Harman today doing some trout fishing in the Dry Fork....we caught about 20 between 4 of us. I alone caught atleast 30-40 leaves. There are tons down in the the water already!! The trees seem to slowly be changing colors. I have a few pics that I will put up as soon as my buddy gets them loaded off his camera.

Dave Lasher's Canaan Valley Weather Station sits at just under 3700 feet. Its name s Davis 3SE. Best Valley weather site on the web: http://canaanweather.4t.com/

I believe the Valley is generally 5-10 degrees colder than Davis in Winter. I don't think altitude is the main factor though. As jonjon pointed out, the altitude difference between Davis and the Valley floor is almost negligable. The Valley is just more boxed in between Cabin Mountain and Canaan/Mozark Mountains. This sets up some crazy microclimates there, with some incredible pockets of cold air floating about. I have seen the temp on the thermometer in my vehicle drop dramatically sometimes up to 20 degrees passing through these frigid "bubbles" of cold air trapped between ridges and dips in the topography. At our place in Timberline, around 3400', cold air seems to drop down from the Sods and pile up against the mountain side. It is not unusual to observe the temp drop 5 degrees or more after I leave 32 and head up Timberline Road towards the resort.

Tom

Here are some shots from the other day..Don't mind the haze. I was taking them from the car and my buddies didn't want me to open the window.

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