Want to See Snow on Thanksgiving? Head to Caribou and Avoid NYC

Newswise — If you’re hoping for white and drifting snow while heading to grandmother’s house this Thanksgiving, better hope she lives in Caribou, Maine.

According to the Northeast Regional Climate Center at Cornell University, the nation’s most northeastern city has a 52 percent probability of having at least an inch of snow on the ground on Nov. 24, one of the year’s busiest travel days and the eve of Thanksgiving. That’s the best odds of any location in the Northeast.

Hate the white stuff when you travel? Then head out to celebrate with relatives in the Big Apple. New York City, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., are among a host of coastal cities with barely a 2 percent probability of snow on Nov. 24.

As for heading home, New York and Philly are joined by Atlantic City, N.J., Baltimore, and Wilmington, Del., on the list of most likely snow-free journeys. All these cities have a 0 percent probability of an inch of snow or more on the ground on Sunday, Nov. 28.

Your worst ride home? Caribou, with a 60 percent probability of snow.

The best bet for a white Thanksgiving Day itself? You guessed it: Once again, Caribou, which leads all Northeast cities with a 50 percent chance of enjoying respectable white groundcover as a backdrop for watching the mashed potatoes and the pigskin get passed around.

Rounding out some of the region’s major snow-friendly cities this Thanksgiving are Binghamton, N.Y., which has a 26 percent probability of an inch of snow on the ground; Ithaca, N.Y. and Syracuse, N.Y. have a 22 percent chance; Buffalo, N.Y., Burlington, Vermont and Concord, N.H., all stand at 20 percent; followed by Erie, Pa. (19 percent), and Rochester, N.Y. (18 percent).

Washington, D.C. has a bare 4 percent probability of snow on the ground come Thanksgiving. New York, Philadelphia, Atlantic City, Baltimore and Wilmington are joined by Boston, Charleston, W.Va., Bridgeport, Conn., and Newark, N.J. as the least likely major cities in the Northeast to see snow on the ground next Thursday, all with the minimum 2 percent probability.

The data was compiled by Cornell’s Climate Center using records from 1960 through 2009 to determine the probabilities.

For a complete list of major Northeast cities and the chances for snow during this Thanksgiving holiday, go to www.nrcc.cornell.edu.