FORT KENT, Maine — Several inches of snow blanketed The County, with as much as a foot recorded in Madawaska Wednesday morning, with up to an an additional five inches forecast there through the rest of the day.
As of 10:30 a.m. in the St. John Valley, the National Weather Service was reporting an unofficial high of one foot in Madawaska, with 10 inches in Frenchville, 9 in Van Buren and 8 in Fort Kent.
“I love it,” said Ann Marie Martin, who was walking along the snowy sidewalk of Pleasant Street in Fort Kent with her husband Vaughn. “It’s northern Maine in December.”
That snow was expected to mix with sleet later in the day, according to the weather service forecast for northwest Aroostook, northern Somerset, northern Piscataquis and central Piscataquis counties.
NWS meteorologists warned residents and drivers to expect changing precipitation followed by “rapidly falling temperatures,” potentially turning slush and standing water into treacherous ice in the afternoon and evening.
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- Jonathan Bauch, left, and his father Johnathan Bauch shovel snow from the steps and deck of the Lonesome Pine Trails lodge on Wednesday morning. A winter storm dumped several inches of snow overnight on the slopes of the Fort Kent alpine ski area. (Don Eno)
By late morning Wednesday, unofficial snowfall totals indicated about 7 and a half inches in Presque Isle, with 7 inches in Fort Fairfield and about 5 ½ inches in Caribou and Houlton.
The storm also dropped between 4 and 6 inches in Piscataquis and Penobscot counties, including about 5 inches in Bangor. Coastal and southern parts of the state saw anywhere from a trace to 2 inches.
Most schools in the Valley started a couple of hours late on Wednesday and various community events were canceled or delayed.
Classes were on as scheduled at the University of Maine at Fort Kent. For freshman Stephanie Turcotte of Poland, Maine, a walk across campus in the snow was no big deal.
“I like it,” she said. “I’m used to it.”
State and municipal plow crews were out earlier in the morning clearing roads and sidewalks, along with contractors clearing driveways and parking lots. Local residents too were taking shovels and snowblowers in hand, while merchants cleared storefront walkways.
For retired postal worker Larry Fitzherbert, dealing with the winter weather mix had been part of his job for 39 years.
“I don’t miss it,” he said with a laugh as he brushed snow off the vehicle in his driveway.
“I’m glad we got the snow,” he said. ”Just in time for some great cross country skiing.”
Cross country skiing is on tap, in a big way, this weekend as the Fort Kent Outdoor Center hosts the New England Nordic Ski Association Eastern Cup Nordic Ski races.
Organizers knew they already had enough snow for the race course, so any more white powder will be a bonus. The possibility of freezing rain and a severe dip in temperatures should not affect the trails, according to Fort Kent Outdoor President Carl Theriault.
“It will be work, but will make a better base for fast skiing,” Theriault said.
The weather service forecast overnight temperatures on Wednesday to dip down to 5 degree Fahrenheit, with wind chills as low as 10 below zero. Thursday and Friday daytime highs are not expected to get above 15 degrees.
Although the storm’s snow has been heavy and wet, and a potential issue for power lines, as of 11:20 a.m. on Wednesday, Emera Maine had reported only about 900 residents without power, mainly in Penobscot County.
