Cric_lancster

Come on the band don't dissipate now! It must be moving at about 3 miles an hour! Enthralling stuff who needs telly when you've got a radar! Edit: snowing in Holme - getting closer... C.L.

That band over the Irish sea has caught my eye, cloud is already visible here in the west moving in very slowly. Temperature holding steady at 0.4C, Should be due here in about 25-30 minutes time. Surely I can't miss out on this as well!

Oh right haha, I didn't know Blackpool got a load! Oh dear me... Never mind eh? More than two months left of winter and all that... one of these days we'll get a good pasting Anyway I'm pleased generally for the North-West as a whole. To often we get drawn the short straw in winter but this time it's come off. C.L.

I find it incredible that an area 20 miles away can have the best snow in 13 years, while we had more last february than this time around. Remarkable really, even less than 4 miles away in Caton there have been reports of 3". That's the influence of the coast for you! Moan over

We had a very heavy snow shower at about 11 left about a cm. Since It has melted, leaving sunny skies and ominous clouds that have just skirted around us. There have been a lot of complaints locally about the gritting of roads (the lack of). A number of cars have slipped down the hill next to our house due to the slushy, slippery mess. C.L.

0.7C here, Light Rain. Roads are v slushy and treacherous. Indeed the band over Ireland has weakened. I don't think it's dissapated altogether however, with showers making it across. The Irish Sea could help give the showers a bit of fuel.

Cheers Snowmad, Haha I've learned to live with the Snow/Rain Drama over the years. Good luck to you too in regards to those showers. C.L.

Hmm Yeah I forgot about wind direction, however looking further, there does seem to be a lot of precip off the West Coast of Ireland. If it, or remenants of it, made it across Ireland would there be some potential despite the WSW winds? Or am I being completely unrealistic/Overly Optimistic? C.L.

I know it's a bit of a long shot but what do we think of the big band of precipitation Just North of Ireland? http://www.raintoday.co.uk/ I know it's a way off but does anyone think that may have any possibility of making it far enough south? At this moment in time a Large chunk of Central and Eastern Cumbria should be getting a pasting now. Edit: Similar thoughts to C.G. above

Just had our first proper snow shower since 7 this morning, left a smattering. Radar is telling me that's it for a while here unless something skirts South, Looks like Cumbria is going to have even more of a dumping over the next few hours. Temperature 0.4C

Cheers TWS much appreciated. I've heard Scotforth over the M6 is getting quite a bit, so this figures. Anything we get here I see as a bonus usually - My hopes lie with the temperatures falling later on and picking up on some precipitation post 6pm, The met office seem to go with this IMBY. http://www.metoffice...st_weather.html This may be 'out of date' by now though... Currently Light Rain, 2.0C.

In Lancaster, have had nothing really for the past three hours, all the precip is Skirting to the North, A thaw has set in here as well, Paths and cars beginning to reappear. Looking out over the radar to see if the current precip to the North and East of The Isle of Man can make it here. Temperature now 2.3C, needs to get down! A really biting wind however. What do we think about the temperatures/Dew points? Will they fall generally as the day wears on and the sun goes down? Or is it purely down to local variations and distance from the coast? Thanks CL

Temperature around 2C but not sure of this as my thermometer has been temperamental, Sun peeking through and melting some of the snow on roofs. Hmmm not had any in the past two hours here, Perhaps the Lune Valley snow shield has decided to rear it's ugly head after all EDit: Oooft tell a lie, Some light sleet has appeared...

Snowed nicely this morning, we've had a good 2cm on all surfaces, no melt yet. Cloud continues to pile in from the North-West, also Had a hail shower on top of the snow. The radar seems pretty accurate the Dark clouds I'm seeing to the North are being replicated by the activity on screen. Plenty of Showers piling up in the Irish sea for more potential. Temperature: to be confirmed, Cloud: 9/12. Dark clouds again gathering to the North-West...

-0.2C, Clear Skies some nasty ice has formed on the roads outside as the temps have fallen away rapidly. Same as the last few nights really, this one looks as if it's going to be just as bitter!

Further North here, 1.5C and falling, Partly cloudy, dry for the past 45 minutes or so. The colder air behind the front beginning to show as the Warm sector clears.

3.8C, been pouring down for the last half an hour, everything now melted, now just looks like it has done most of the year - wet To cap it all off having seen North-West Tonight forecast, looks like just south and east of me will get a pasting while IMBY it looks like the precip tomorrow is heading south of me completely. As ever time will tell how accurate this may be...

http://www.raintoday.co.uk/ Does seem to be edging that way. There's still time for developments though...

2.4C here, warm sector is finally beginning to take hold. Almost full cloud cover, dry for the moment.

Currently Light Hail shower in Lancaster. You can be pretty sure that if its it's snowing in Lancaster it will be snowing in Preston, Chorley, Longridge, Garstang. The Inland limit for the influence off the coast is usually about here, perhaps a touch further west. Tomorrow is the big day for everyone IMO, IMBY today I'm not expecting anything except sleet. The true testing of the Lune Valley snow shield comes tomorrow...

The seemingly omnipresent dusting has hit here too... Encouraging UKMO to maintain the cold late weekend/Next week

Just to report from Lancaster, Had a very heavy hail shower about an hour and a bit ago, has left a covering on cars locally and in the shade. Have also seen cars driving in from the North East with snow covering Bonnets and windscreens. Now Bright, sunny and chilly.

For coastal areas it does look like the Saturday snow potential is the wrong side of marginal, inland may be a different story. Have noticed the Met Office have an Early Warning for snow in the North-West on Sunday - Baby steps and another good sign. Early next week shows even more potential looking at the GFS 12z, having just seen the UKMO & ECM 0z these additionally hold good potential for the NW early next week, IMBY hopefully the temperatures can start to play ball and get the right side of marginal for us snow starved Coastal* areas in the past few years... For those who may worry about how being near the coast can affect them, I take solace from the number of times I've seen it snow 4 miles inland in Lancaster while it rains in Morecambe right on the coast.

I remember the 2004 event very well, we received a couple of cm, lasted the whole day! truly memorable. If this pattern does establish itself for late this week/early next week, I'd be more than pleased IMBY if it was as good as Christmas '04. 18z GFS does look a bit unlikely IMO. ECM has promise for the North. Either way it's nice to see these charts within a week, rather than clutching at the cold mirages of deep FI.

I wouldn't be too downbeat about chances this weekend. Living in one of the least snowy areas in Britain despite our latitiude is obviously very frustrating, especially when opportunities for snow seem to hit everywhere except here! However if you set your expectations low, often the odd flurry can be a pleasant surprise. I wouldn't worry too much about the models showing a warm sector at the moment for Sunday/Monday, Perhaps I'd be a bit cheesed off if it re-appears/strengthens however there's plenty of time for improvements. East Lancashire, Most of Cumbria, West Yorkshire, Cheshire and Greater Manchester you'd've thought would have the greater chance of the white stuff West Cumbria, Merseyside and the West Coast of Lancashire would have the greater chance of sleet or rain rather than snow. I wouldn't worry to much at the moment of course as our window will change over the coming days, hopefully for the better. If the Northerly strengthens or the lows to the North move further south and east, our potential warm sector may have less of an effect on coastal areas. As I've mentioned I still believe a number in the North-West may receive a surprise on Thursday night/Friday if the odd wintry shower claws its way over the Pennines. Plenty to play for in the coming days....