November brought snow to mountains, joy to skiers

November was a treat for skiers, who received the gift of early snow, and for those who enjoy (and who doesn't?) the Pacific Northwest's special brand of wet, bone-chilling cold.

Early storms and cooler weather dropped the "freezing altitude," or the level in the mountains where rain turns to snow, said Art Gaebel, meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Seattle.

That meant local ski areas had one of the earliest openings in years. Crystal Mountain reported a 26-inch snowpack at the base yesterday; Mount Baker, a whopping 72 inches.

Although a bit wetter and colder than the average November, last month was not all that different from most years.

The average high was 48.5 degrees, 2 degrees below normal; the average low was 37.1, 2-1/2 degrees below normal. The 19 days of rain yielded 6.77 inches, or 0.87 inch more than normal.

Rainfall from Jan. 1 through Nov. 30 totaled 37.64 inches — more than the average year's 31.44 inches in those 11 months but skewed by several big storms, including one in October that dumped more than 5 inches and another on Nov. 18 that brought 2.06 inches.

Gaebel was ho-hum about the month's weather.

"It all averages out," he said.

To come: more of the same, the forecast calling for showers this week, with highs in the upper 40s and low 50s.

And that's OK with skiers.

J. Patrick Coolican: 206-464-3315 or jcoolican@seattletimes.com