Farmers' Almanac Releases Winter 2018 Forecast For Connecticut

You're going to want to make sure you have a snow shovel and/or snowblower handy this winter if the latest Farmers' Almanac winter forecast for Connecticut is to be believed. With summer coming to a close, many are looking towards the winter to make holiday plans and prepare for more cold weather. While the last two winters have been relatively mild, The Farmers' Almanac is predicting a cold and snowy winter for Connecticut and the rest of the Northeast.

In its recently released 2017-2018 winter forecast, the 200-year-old weather resource predicted winter conditions to be "a bit more normal" as far as temperatures are concerned in the eastern part of the country. In addition, locales east of the Rocky Mountains are expected to experience "above-normal precipitation." (To receive free news alerts from your hometown in Connecticut click here.)

"From the Great Lakes into the Northeast, snowier-than-normal conditions are expected," says the Farmers' Almanac website. "We can hear the skiers, boarders, and snowmobilers cheering from here!"

The forecast for the Northeast – from Maryland to Maine – includes "snowier-than-normal" conditions, and the publication has "red-flagged" five time periods for heavy precipitation along the Atlantic Seaboard: Jan. 20-23, Feb. 4-7, Feb. 16-19, March 1-3 and March 20-23.

If the forecast holds true, parts of Connecticut could be in for more than 50 inches of snow this winter. According the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection, the average winter snowfall in the Northwest Hills is 50 inches. Along the coast, the state sees an average winter snowfall of 30-35 inches.

January boasts a bulk of that snowfall with an average of 12.3 inches, followed by February with 11.3 inches and March with 9.3 inches.

Now in its 200th year, the Farmers' Almanac uses the the same combination of sunspots, tides and other weather factors it's been using since 1818 to make its prediction. And its latest 2018 edition, which hits bookstores this week, spells out the usual icy doom and freezing gloom for Nutmeggers this winter.

Reporting from Mike Carraggi was used in this report.

Patch file photo