ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A week before Christmas, Alaska’s largest city is the last place you would expect to see equipment making snow.
“We want Santa to bring snow, soon,” Terry Goodwin said as she hit a ski trail Thursday in Anchorage near snowmaking machines churning out the white stuff.
A picturesque northern winter-scape is hardly the reality here as a spate of weird weather lingers in Anchorage. By this time of year, the city normally has 30.9 inches of snowfall, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Bill Ludwig. But the city has seen 10.3 inches this season from just two measurable snowfalls, with much of that melted down to a thin layer in many places.
Bare ground can be seen in places, and temperatures have been averaging in the 30s, prompting a few hardy residents to take to the streets in T-shirts and shorts.
There is no bitter cold in the foreseeable forecast, either, with temperatures expected to be above or near normal through the end of the year.
