When Will We Get Our First Snow in the Duluth Superior Area?

When Will We Get Our First Snow? Here Are the Average First Snowfall Dates for the Duluth – Superior Area

While fall is still a few weeks off officially on the calendar, Labor Day usually serves as the bookend for the summer season for many. With school starting up and football (and other fall activities) getting into full swing, it won’t be long before the leaves fall…and then that dreaded “s” word will soon follow.

The good news for those that aren’t big fans of snow is that El Niño is making a major appearance this winter. That should mean a milder and less snowy winter for folks in Minnesota and Wisconsin. In any case, if you want to mentally brace yourself (or hype yourself up) for the first snowfall of the season, the Washington Post compiled a bunch of NOAA data to explore when folks around the country usually see their first snow.

As you can see in the map below, the Twin Ports region typically sees the first snowfall during the first two weeks of November (often times siding closer to the first couple days of the month). Far northern parts of the Iron Range and “border country” see snow a little earlier (sometime in October) and southern Minnesota and Wisconsin usually get their first dose in late November.

Last year, our first significant snow of the season fell right in this range of early November. Remember the insane storm that dumped feet of snow in parts of Wisconsin? Here’s a little reminder:

On a more detailed level, the University of Minnesota offers a breakdown of when the first accumulating snowfall arrives on the Minnesota side of the border. For the immediate Duluth area, that date is November 6. As you work into the Arrowhead or onto the Iron Range, that date gets earlier, with dates around October 31 to November 1.

Regardless of when it falls, the reality we live in here in the Northland is that snow is coming eventually. Just make sure you make the most of the warm weather we have!