What Does the Old Farmer’s Almanac Say About Rockford’s Coming Winter?

With weather being the number one topic in America for the second straight week, I've started to think a bit about what the winter of 2017-2018 will look like for the Rockford area. I figure that a publication that's been around since Washington was president would be my best source for that info. Plus, it's sitting here on my desk, so I didn't have to actually search for anything...

I usually just take winter as it comes, because really, how different is one winter from another one around here? It gets cold (some winters are colder than others), it sleets and snows (sometimes more, sometimes less), and generally gets kind of crappy for 90 to 120 days. We generally break it down after-the-fact by calling the previous winter "harsh," or "mild."

So, what's it gonna be for us?

The Old Farmer's Almanac, in publication since 1792, says that we in the Lower Lakes Region (which includes Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin) can expect the coming winter to be:

Winter will be warmer than normal, with slightly above-normal precipitation. The coldest periods will be in early to mid-December, early January, and mid-February. Snowfall will be above normal in Ohio and below normal elsewhere, with the snowiest periods in early to mid-December, late December, early January, and early February.

 

It would appear that not everyone is a believer when it comes to the Old Farmer's Almanac: