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Here I was writing my last blog post all about how we don’t get winter down here in Gulf Shores. Sooooooooooo, who would’ve thought that Gulf Shores, Alabama—a place known for its sunny beaches and mild winters—would wake up to 8 inches of snow this week? This historic event has left locals and visitors in awe as the Gulf Coast transformed into a winter wonderland for the first time in history.
Historic Gulf Shores Snowstorm:
Generally at this time of year, the Gulf Coast is mild, breezy and snow-free. The average January high is 64 and the average low is 43. So imagine our surprise when the news started talking about “record breaking snowfall”! We were wondering which of our northern friends was cruel enough to send their lousy weather down here!!
This record-breaking snow event dropped 8 inches of snow here in Gulf Shores – an amount that breaks the ALL TIME record for this area. The previous highest record was 3 inches, which fell in 1973. According to US News, the storm was caused by a Polar Vortex, coupled with a strong ridge of high pressure near Alaska, which shifted the cold air mass really far south. Those Alaskans….. 🙂
By about 10:00 am the snow started to fall gently. By noon it was snowing sideways and I was beginning to wonder if I had been zapped back to Chicago somehow!! The wind was blustery and the snow was blowing like we were in a snow globe! We turned on the fireplace, popped some popcorn and hunkered down. For days…
We were so glad to have our heated mattress pad on our bed! It kept us toasty warm through the single-digit nighttime temperatures and is super comfortable! We have used heated blankets in the past, but this mattress pad is on another level! So much more comfortable than a blanket where you can feel the wires – you cannot feel anything in this mattress pad. A game changer!!
Gulf Coast Snowstorm Shuts Down Everything
To say that they don’t have the means to deal with snow down here in Gulf Shores is an understatement. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING shut down! Walmart – closed. Target – closed. Grocery stores – closed. All schools and government offices – closed. Every restaurant – closed. Even Waffle House!!
I really wanted to get down to the beach with my camera, but the bridge over the Intercoastal was closed down too, so that was not possible. I did however, get some good pictures around the campground.
Mother Nature sure is unpredictable, isn’t she?? I must say though, our trusty Entegra RV handled the storm like a champ!! I’m not sure I can say the same for a few other campers here – several had problems with water, and a couple of them even ditched the campground for (I’m assuming) a nice warm hotel room. I guess this is where years of experience in a camper really paid off – Jim really knew how to handle the possibility of frozen water pipes or loss of electricity, and we made it through with no problems.
While we consider ourselves lucky to have seen such a once-in-a-lifetime event, we’re ready to bring back the warm temperatures!! Here’s to rising temps this week back to near 70 and some much needed sunshine!! WooHoo!!!
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