#2618 "Flurry of Saturday Afternoon Activity"

#2618 "Flurry of Saturday Afternoon Activity"
10x10 inches

Snow flurries in the southwesterly flow off Lake Ontario produced some dramatic lighting as the sun broke through the cumulus. Singleton was still very much in the winter season with lots of snow and wind. 

A cold frontal snowquall warning was issued as I was painting. "A brief snow squall will move across from the northwest. Hazards: Heavy snow at times. Snowfall rates of 2 to 4 cm per hour are possible, for a brief period. Sudden reduction in visibility due to heavy snow and blowing snow." The visibility did drop to almost nothing for an hour just after 1 pm with the cold frontal passage. It was very pleasant in front of the fire with my oils and easel. 

The past winter was characterized by the La Niña phase of the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO). This should be no surprise given how many Alberta Clippers had raced across the Prairies and the Great Lakes Basin. From my vantage in eastern Ontario, it was a refreshingly typical winter full of cold, snow, ice and wind. You might be surprised to appreciate that our winter was shaped by what happens over the Pacific. The equatorial sea surface temperatures were below average across the eastern Pacific Ocean and the odds are 53% that this pattern will continue into the Northern Hemisphere summer but that is another story. 

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