Snow in St. Louis

St. Louis Snow 01-31-2013I decided to stay over in St. Louis Tuesday night because it was snowing a little and I didn’t want to run into icy conditions on the way south. Ironically enough, it was snowing harder Wednesday afternoon than it had the night before.

I was running low on gas, so I stopped to fill up before getting on the road. While watching dollars get sucked into my tank, I noticed white pellets on my dark coat. This isn’t too bad, I thought.

It was coming down a little harder when I spotted the store on the right. Wife Lila has a birthday, Valentine’s Day and the anniversary of our first date coming up in February, and I saw something that might get me off the hook for being in Missouri all of February. It’ll be our secret, though. Don’t tell her.

Snow filled my mirrors

St. Louis Snow 01-31-2013While I was parked at the store, the wind and snow were blowing up from behind the car. I came out to find my rearview mirrors packed with snow and the snow starting to stick on the ground. It was also clinging to the sides of the trees. (Like always, click on the photos to make them larger.)

Hoping school would be called off

St. Louis Snow 01-31-2013Seeing the school bus pass made me remember the old days.

Many a night I’d get up to look at the sky against the streetlight outside the bedroom window to see if a predicted snow had arrived. School officials back then, knowing that most of the students walked to school uphill and barefooted, figured we were tough enough to handle two or three feet of snow, so classes were rarely cancelled.

Of course, that would set me to stomping around the house railing, “What are they trying to do, kill us?”

Not quite sticking to road

St. Louis Snow 01-31-2013Even though the snow Wednesday was wetter than Tuesday’s, it wasn’t sticking on the road yet. I saw salt trucks out later, but they may have already made a pass.

Swirling snow

St. Louis Snow 01-31-2013The strong side wind and the rush of traffic made the snow slither and swirl making me think of a ghostly white snake running in front of me.

Gee, no kidding

St. Louis Snow 01-31-2013The helpful highway sign suggests that we “Watch for Changing Road Conditions.” Like we’d never have thought of that on our own.

The snow stopped at Pevely, just like someone had thrown a switch.  There was quite a bit on the ground around St. Genevieve, but the middle of the trip was precipitation free. About 35 miles north of Cape, around Perryville, it started coming down hard again and continued all the way into Cape. That’s funny because Perryville was always the weather system dividing line: if there was snow in the region, it usually STOPPED at Perryville.

I’d have shot more pictures, but I had forgotten how cold weather will drain camera batteries. I can usually shoot 500 or 600 pictures between charges, but not on this trip.

 

 

 

 

8 Replies to “Snow in St. Louis”

  1. Ken, I’ve noticed the weather divide too at Perryville. I saw a map one time that divided Missouri into two climate zones and Perryville was the dividing line between continental and subtropical.

    There is definitely different weather patterns in the bootheel than where I am now, in Rolla, Missouri. Yesterday we got snow for about an hour or so and it covered the grass, but that is about it.

  2. At no time, Gabe Ford, did I encounter “subtropical” climate while up there with Steinie. And Steinie: pull over to shoot art on the road – you scare me enough as it is without a camera as an eye. It’s a chilly 49 down here today; but so much damper: my finger joints are killing me. Still, the sun is shining and grass is green, palm trees waving…

    1. Just going off what the map says. I think it has to do with the average lowest temperature in the winter time, but I’m not 100% sure on that.

    2. I wasn’t composing those photos: I was just holding the camera up and pointing in the general direction. You’ll also notice red stop lights in several of the photos. Taking a picture at a stop light requires less attention than the woman texting next to me.

  3. Due to our remodeling, my car was outside during the day for our most recent ice/snow event. I haven’t been able to open my trunk since, even though the car is in the garage at night. I think it is something like -7 at the moment. Ah, the joys of the north.

  4. I know /recognize the store you went to; one of my wife’s favorites in St Louis. I have been there multiple times. She always puts a bug in my ear to stop. You did good!

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