Ignore the snow and the sub-zero temperatures: slap on some suntan oil and get ready to head to the beach (if there was one). It is going to be a warm winter ... for Hanover.
Usually the very mention of Dartmouth causes a shiver, with images of icy sidewalks, snow-covered buildings and frostbitten students. Normal Hanover winters are nothing short of brutal.
But if the weather continues to follow the trends of the last three months and meets up to predictions, this winter will be anything but normal.
Paul Denault, meteorologist for the National Weather Service, said New Hampshire experienced above average temperatures in October, November and December -- with December being 6.3 degrees above normal.
He said that the National Weather Service 90-day outlook for December, January and February calls for a continuation of this pattern: above average temperature and below average snowfall.
While the normal total snowfall for a winter in Concord is 64 inches, Denault said he "would not be surprised if we got 35 to 40 inches this winter." Concord only received 3.2 inches of snowfall in December, more than 10 inches fewer than normal.
Denault said that he expects about 60 percent of the normal total snowfall in New Hampshire, and "temperatures two to seven degrees above normal right through February."
For the Dartmouth students, many of whom are in the midst of their first winter in Hanover, the news of a moderate winter drew mixed opinions.
Jaime Staples '98, who hails from Georgia, said she was "thrilled" by the predictions.
"I thought it was going to be absolutely miserable, and I was very afraid of it," she said. She added the accumulated snowfall this winter already marks the most snow she has ever seen.
etoile Pinder '98, who is from the Bahamas, said the tame winter is welcome news to her. "It's good that there will be fewer days with negative temperatures," she said.
But the warmer temperatures might be bad news for fans of large Winter Carnival sculptures.
Louis Spelios '95, who calls himself a "weather buff," noted that 1992, his freshman winter, also had above average temperatures and below normal snowfall.
That year, he said, there wasn't enough snow on the ground to build the Winter Carnival sculpture.
"They brought manufactured snow from a couple of skiways in on dump trucks," Spelios recalled. He predicted that if the pattern continues, a similar fate will befall this year's sculptors.
Spelios said that there was an especially ironic twist to the forecast of a moderate winter.
"Last winter was the exact opposite -- cold temperatures and lots of snow," he said, "and no one was prepared for it."
"The amusing thing is, this year there were a record number of sales of snow blowers in New England," and now these snow blowers will hardly be used.
Some students from warm climates, like David Walthall '98 from Alabama, are still hoping for the typical Dartmouth winter that makes for great skiing.
But even Walthall admitted he is happy with the forecasts that the winter would be warmer.
"I'm looking forward to the new experience [of Dartmouth winters] but at the same time I wouldn't mind if it's not brutal," he said.
On the other hand, most of the students hailing from cold weather climates said they were disappointed by the long-term forecasts.
"It kind of bums me out," said Andrea Stern '98, who hails from Colorado.
She said she doesn't mind the low temperatures and is discouraged by the predictions of below-average snowfall. "I like to be able to ski on good snow," she said.
Cold-weather buff Ben Heller '97, who plays goalie for the Dartmouth hockey team, is still happy about the lack of snow because it bodes well for playing pond hockey, one of his favorite pastimes.
