Donut Hole

Does anyone know what causes the hole in the Eastern Adirondacks?

I'm watching the radar now and it looks like some precip is coming off the north end of Ontario and making it's way into the western side, as we normally see, but what causes the hole and the precip on the very eastern edge of NY and VT.  Is that all from Champlain?  Or is there some other affect here?

The stuff in Vt is uplift and is enhanced by Champlain

Also there might be precip in the dacks that the radar isn't seeing

Yeah, but typically that area of the NY receives less snow.

Is that due to a shadow from Tug Hill and the western Adirondacks?

If so, I'm a bit confused why the precip typically starts up again on the Greens.  Accumulation of moisture from Champlain and then orographic  uplift?

maybe Norester 27 will chime in, he is better versed on the Dacks..

There are several factors at work. Champlain is part of it, but really only in NoVT. It has nothing to do with why Big K gets more snow.

It's all topography. The orientation of Green Mtn spine is  a big reason. A long tall ridge that extends North/South, and at the northern end Northeast/Southwest which is even better.

Adk topography matters too. Its more like a bunch or disorganized peaks which disrupts the lake effect more and doesn't get nearly the orographics.  For Gore to get lake effect you really need some kind of upper level enhancement.

Just west of Gore is a mini spine, west of Indian Lake. (Would have been a great place to put Gore actually.) That often snags the last of the lake effect before it gets to North Creek.

Also Jason is correct Gore is very far from the center of both the BTV and ALY radars. So it gets more than it looks sometimes.

Good info.

Yes, I'm definitely very well versed in the "Snowy" range in the Adirondacks.  Also Newcomb, which is north of there tends to get significantly more snow than North Creek/River IME.

So what about KIllington?  And also the Taconics.  Where is their moisture coming from?  Lower Hudson valley?  

My impression is that most precip we see downstate comes up the coast, SW to NE and then up the Hudson valley. Greek and the very western cats supposedly benefit from lake effect that rolls all the way across the flatlands of CNY

Areas to the east get there moisture from coastal storm..

The green mountain winners Jay/Stowe/MRG Valley..They get it from the coastal moisture and then from the northerly orthographic effect after the low pulls away..

Stowe and MRG even hook up on west wind..

Yeah, it depends on which way the winds blows.

Typically you see it blowing due east and just blasting Tug Hill, Black RIver Valley and maybe or maybe not the Western Adirondacks.

If that shifts a little SE, then the Allegheny Plateau becomes just like the Tug.  You'll often see this driving on 90 to the East.  Around Syracuse a lot of times you'll really start to pick up some snow where there could be none on the east side of Rochester.  Then as soon as you pick up some elevation it starts to get really snowy.  I think the major Finger Lakes have something to do with this as well, because they create kind of a large flat region in between the hills of CNY and those WNY.  So that moisture has to travel a lot farther south of 90, and across those lakes to get that orograhic lift.

We get the same effect down in Bristol HIlls, then being the highest elevation areas for some ways to the east of Erie and south of Ontario.  Really depends on which way the wind is blowing.  There's also some serious microclimates down there.  You could have 2" of snow and 10 degree warmer temps in the valleys and 2' of snow and cooler temps up on the tops of the hills, which are kind of flat plateau like.  Makes it a little tricky for BC DH skiing as you don't want to drop down too far or you lose your snow pack.  I guess every mountain has that effect, but you really notice it on those hills because the high elevation, flat tops cover a large area.

My WF perspective (north central/eastern Adirondacks)

Costal Storms/Nor’ easters

Whiteface is located to far north and west for the predominate costal storm tracks and too far north and east for the prevailing lake effect.  

That said when we get hit - skiing rivals any thing on the east coast.

Killington is pretty much geographically located in prime nor’easter track

I grew up in northern rennselaer county which was bullseye for costal tracts.