News Photo by Josh Jambo The large salt pile in Alpena already has a sizable chunk out of it, after heavy snow and some ice moved into the area over the weekend. The National Weather Service said there is a chance that the area will have a white Christmas.

ALPENA — If you were hoping for a graceful entrance into winter weather, November showed up with other plans.

The month featured cool temperatures, stone gusty winds, and a bout of snow at the very end of it.

The high temperature for the month of November was 55 degrees, which was reached on two consecutive days, November 3 and 4, according to preliminary weather data from The National Weather Service.

By comparison, in October, the high for the month came in at 89 degrees, achieved on Oct. 4. The lowest mark was recorded on Nov.18 and Nov. 29 with a temperature of 18 degrees.

This November was certainly no stranger to snowfall, especially the last two days of the month. On Nov. 29 and 30 Alpena received a total of 6.1 inches of snow. Bringing the total for the month to 9.7 inches.

In November of 2024 Alpena reached a high of 66 degrees, with a low of 23 degrees. There was little snow, as accumulations only climbed to a little over six inches.

In November of last year, the average temperature was 41 degrees.

The National Weather Service office in Gaylord spoke about November’s weather in Northeast Michigan, and provided a peek at what type of weather could be in store over the next couple weeks.

“Snow amounts are always hard to predict,” meteorologist Jim Keysor said.. “The weather over the next couple weeks is certainly favorable for those who enjoy snowmobiling, and Michigan’s winter recreational opportunities,”

Even though we are still weeks away from Santa coming to town, Keysor said if he had to make an educated guess if there might be a white Christmas or not, he said it is too early to tell for sure, but the odds might lean toward some snow on the ground.

“I’m expecting it to warm up over the next couple of weeks, followed by a cold front which could provide an opportunity for snowfall,” Keyser said.

Keysor also added: “none of the upcoming weather so far appears to be anything that would cause major problems.”