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The relatively healthy snowpack across Northern Michigan is going to take a deep hit this weekend as warmer temperatures are poised to surge back across the state beginning today and continuing through at least midday Friday.

As we have been saying since last week, a ridge of warmer air will cross over the Upper Great Lakes region with a south-southwest wind feeding that warmer air back into the area. Temperatures did cool Monday night with Grayling dropping to 0F. However, temperatures Monday will climb back well into the 30’s by the afternoon with dry conditions. Temperatures on Wednesday will reach into the 40’s with readings on Thursday well into the 40’s in most neighborhoods with some spots reaching/exceeding the 50F mark. Odds are that temperatures Thursday night will remain in the 40’s all night long with a cold front arriving later Friday which will bring things back down to the 20’s for the start of the weekend.

While temperatures rise and the snow ends for a few days, it will be replaced with the possibility of patchy freezing drizzle Tuesday night with light rain showers and plain old drizzle Thursday as temperatures spike well above freezing. The rapid melting could also potentially create isolated ice jams on area rivers which oftentimes lead to water quickly backing up behind the jam. The 7&4 Storm Team will monitor river gauges closely to see how that evolves.

Let’s not forget though that it is only mid-February, and already, there are indications of a storm system early next week. It’s way too early to get into details, but we may just as quickly next week replace some of that lost snow.