Active Winter Storm Pattern Predicted For NoVA, DC: AccuWeather

WASHINGTON, D.C. — As horrible as the Washington, D.C., region is at coping with snow on the roads, ice is even worse, and this winter could be wet and icy, according to the latest prediction. A new, long-range winter weather forecast has been released by Accuweather.com and it's predicting a stormy winter for the Northeast, which the weather service says includes the Washington metro.

AccuWeather long-range forecaster Paul Pastelok says that fall will remain relatively warm except for a few cold spells and winter's chill won't set in until at least the end of 2019.

“Whether or not it’s snowstorms, ice storms or mixed events, I do feel this is going to be an active year for the Northeast,” Pastelok said.

Cities farther south, including Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, will be more likely to get a mix of rain and snow.

He says winter will pack a punch after the New Year and we can expect a significant number of winter storms.

What Do The Farmers' Almanac And Old Farmer's Almanac Predict For Winter?

Followers of the Farmers' Almanac are bracing for a snowy, bone-chilling season while the Old Farmer's Almanac's devotees are shunning snow blowers and taking out umbrellas.

The two meteorologic publishers may have almost identical names, but their long-range forecasts are like night and day.

The Farmers' Almanac, which released its prediction on Aug. 26, expects colder-than-normal temperatures and a lot of snow, with the frostiest snap coming during the last week of January and stretching into February. Winter weather will last into April.

But the Old Farmer's Almanac, which unveiled its forecast in September, expects the Northeast to be wet and warmer than normal. "The middle of the country and New England can bank on a slush fund as 'more wet than white' conditions will leave sludgy messes that freeze during the overnights," its forecast says.

Both use secret formulas to predict the weather that they keep closely guarded. The two made opposite predictions last winter too, with the Farmers' Almanac warning it would be colder and snowier than normal, while the Old Farmer's Almanac predicted the Northeast would be warm, wet and with less snow than on average. The winter of 2018-19 fell somewhere between the two forecasts.

Read Accuweather's full winter 2019-20 prediction here.