There are less than two weeks left to meteorological winter, while the spring equinox is now less than five weeks away.
No matter what version of the calendar you choose to follow, this winter has actually felt and looked like ... winter.
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Back-to-back-to-back weekend systems brought everything from sleet and freezing rain to inches of snow (finally!). Combine that with several mornings in the teens this winter, and our teeth have been left chattering since the start of 2026.
Let's see how this winter stacks up against the ghosts of winter's past.
Ask the Meteorologist: How severe has this winter been in Central North Carolina?
Teeth-chattering cold
There have been quite a few mornings when I've felt myself making the mad dash from the car to the office just to avoid the cold. We've had 10 mornings in the teens this winter -- a first since the winter of 2017 and 2018.
In Raleigh and Fayetteville, it's been the coldest winter in 15 years!
Snow in the south!
Now, let's talk about that snow! At 3.6 inches, the Triangle has now seen its snowiest winter through mid-February since the winter of 2018 and 2019.
It comes as a bit of a surprise, because the definition of "average snow" in our area has changed over the years.
The long-term average snow per winter is around 6 to 7 inches, which certainly doesn't pop off the page for the many northern transplants in the area.
In the last decade or so, however, that average has gone down to about 2 to 4 inches of snow per winter.
Other parts of the state, however, have blown way past that mark.
The Outer Banks saw blizzard conditions the last day of January. New Bern recorded a foot-and-a-half of snow, taking over places like Denver, Colorado, for its snow total this winter.
Erik Heden, warning coordination meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Morehead City, told us how historic this snow was in an exclusive interview with WRAL.
He said Morehead City recorded, “The most snow since Christmas of ’89, so historic snow. I know some folks are disappointed in your area, but it dumped in our area, and we’re going to be dealing with it for quite some time.”
What's left?
With weeks left to winter, let's see where we're headed. No groundhogs were awakened during the writing of this piece.
Long-term outlooks shown by NOAA's Climate Prediction Center indicate warmer-than-average weather is likely across the southern United States. This is a trend they foresee continuing into the spring.
Hope is not lost for snow-lovers, though. Since data started being kept in the late-1800s, 35% of our snow comes after mid-February.
Your vote
pugongyingbo.com/yourvoice: Are you over the snow, or are you hoping for more?