Gord

At least if something does wander off course towards us, it'll definitely be snow. Sunday 24th January was such a nice position to be in when precipitation and marginality were neither a problem. I think East Anglians are the only ones who can hold that kind of confidence heading into this weekend at the moment. For the southeast, mild sectors might ruin things a little...and for the rest of us, the amount of precipitation is the issue. But if the radar does show anything heading to us, at least we know it will be snow. It's a nice position to be in. And if nothing happens...then guess what? Yes...DRY WEATHER AT LAST!

We’ve reached that point where it’s now looking likely and we’re going round in circles looking for the finer details. It’s nice to reach that point again this winter though. Even though it’s a different set up, the last 2 weekends have been good lessons for me. We’ve had the experience of a success and a failure on consecutive weekends and we were going round in circles on the build up to them as well. I think I’ll wait until Friday, maybe even Saturday before I start contemplating our snow chances in detail. Don’t let me put the rest of you off though...it makes for great discussion! And we have many easterlies from the past to draw experience from...a good mix of success and failures too.

I get the excitement in the southeast having spent a good deal of my life on the North Sea Coast. I've spent the first 20 years of my life in Lowestoft (and 2 in Sunderland), the greatest snow depths I've seen in my life have been in Lowestoft in 1987 and 1991 (matched in Sunderland by a persistant local streamer off the sea in 2004). They even beat 2 years I spent in Columbus, Ohio...nothing there came close to those experiences on the North Sea coast. An easterly really is high risk and but very high reward for them. I've seen plenty of easterlies go wrong in Lowestoft. In fact, in some of them, the West Midlands has actually done better (March 2013 being the best example I can think of, remember speaking to my mum on the phone in Lowestoft who was sick of the constant rain while we were absolutely buried here in Gornal!). The proximity of the North Sea really can make it very marginal over there. I've also recalled times where Kent has been hit hard and Suffolk has remained dry...and vice versa. That'll be why there's so much giddyness going on across the forums. The southeast has seen nothing all winter and now they've been offered a chance of their holy grail scenario...but it's very very risky for them hence the nervousness and tetchyness. Snow is a safer bet over here during various scenarios which obviously don't just include easterlies, but the amounts we can get (and still can be impressive) would not normally come close to the amounts along the north sea counties when the stars align for them. Like I said, in Lowestoft, I've seen what I call perfection twice in 20 years (87/91) and a smattering of other decent but not on a par of those 2 years from easterlies. Good luck to them.

Always the chance of stray flurries and dying showers in easterlies this far west. Probably what the forecasts are picking up on. Sometimes, mini flurry streamers set up, taking several hours just to build a cm. Seen that here before. Then...very very occasionally...streamers like the one exactly 12 years ago today get going at an exact perfect angle and deliver the goods. But I suspect these forecasts are picking up on the possibility of light showers flying across this way if the wind is strong enough.

Yep, memories of the first week of January 2010. Looked like a dry and cold week and not that exciting for us. We were all a bit resigned to that was how it was going to go. Then a sliding low or trough or something (sorry, can’t remember the exact details!) appeared at quite late notice and gave us quite a snowfall on the 5th. Only 2 days into the cold spell too. I think it was January 2010 anyway.

It's been a brilliant and frustrating winter all at the same time for us here hasn't it? It feels like we have been within touching distance of a once in a generation epic winter. At the same time, it also feels like, in equal measure, that we've been in touching distance of the biggest letdown and disappointment we've seen since the dawn of internet forums! However, for us, this halfway house has been more than acceptable. Not without some luck too. I just feel for those further south and east who have yet had nothing...and in theory, they should be closer to the colder air. If the big easterly never happens this winter, we'll be arguing nationwide about how good this winter was for many years to come!

Just got back in from my mother in law’s (she’s in our support bubble) who lives in Hagley. It was snowing lightly in Hagley as we were leaving, stopped just as we approached Lye. Nothing in Dudley or up here.

No, can’t complain at all. Low expectations for the next few days, but I’ll keep an eye on the forecasts around mid week and see where we stand going forward from there. Today has been interesting to follow as ever so once again, thank you everyone for your input.

At work now in Birmingham city centre and it’s turned back to rain here.

At least we got one that worked properly last weekend! What’s going on out there now is still better than anything the last 2 winters offered here. Funny how different snow scenarios are playing out with different degrees of success all within a month (and a bit!).

It’s actually snowing quite nicely, just as well as it has during the other events we’ve seen this winter. But it’s that slight change in conditions that makes all the difference.

Roofs and grass becoming white now. But it’s not the kind of settling that’s going to last.

Starting to settle on roofs now, but I think we’re going to end up with a very slushy deposit here if it does continue to settle.

Just woke up to see it’s snowing, but the ground is wet so must have turned recently.

I understand people's frustrations, and it's fair to make constructive criticisms of forecasts/warnings...because yes, to us, sometimes they seem strange and make no sense. But to use the words 'pathetic' and 'lazy' at what are people's professions is a bit much. We are talking about a vocation that someone has trained very hard to undertake. And it can't be an easy job right now. Someone who puts their heart and soul into their work might come here and read this.

The warning area is just for where there’s high ground now it seems. There will be wintriness of some sort around here I’m sure, just not anything disruptive. Will still be interesting, just tempered by the fact we’ve already had 2 significant snowfalls this winter, so for us lucky ones....it’s all a bit ‘meh’ I suppose. Last winter, we’d been all over it at this point in pure desperation, the adjusted warning would have just made us more determined!

Probably, but this time last week, we were fairly convinced we would be too far north for last Sunday's event. This winter has been quite unpredictable so far here in the West Midlands. The beauty of the Atlantic not being in total control of our weather!

We’re meant to be reaching double digits in temperature on Thursday not snow amounts. I mean...that would be the turnaround of the century so far. Edit: Sorry, wrong regional...but the point still stands.

All finished here. Well, that was a really decent event today. 4th only to December 2017, March 2018 and the daddy of them all, March 2013 since I moved to Upper Gornal in 2012. So yeah, what can I say? Job done and a long wait well rewarded.

Heavy snow here now.

Here in Upper Gornal, the Beast from the East definitely delivered more. The most I've seen here since I moved here was March 2013. That was exceptional in these parts.

Picking up here as well. Starting to fill in the cleared bits.

Shhhh....we get enough scrunity with MO symbols on here as it is, don't add actual geography into our mind games!

It is, latest radar frames now have it coming down over Penkridge from Stafford. The issue will be how quickly it weakens and fizzles out now. You never know, if it eventually pulls away to the south east, it might drag a north westerly behind it and open up the Cheshire Gap! I'm joking...of course... ...(?)

It was painful when it was heading north this morning! I think Oldbury, just a few miles away, already had a couple of cm by the time it started getting heavy enough here!