THE TOP 10 REASONS a Minnesota mom concludes the weather is really bad in Fargo:
10) The West Fargo Police Department’s business office closes on Sunday due to “potential extreme weather conditions” and reopens today, “weather permitting.”
9) Four foot high drifts block ramps along Interstate 29 on Sunday.
8) A law enforcement rescuer of stranded motorists finds himself stuck on an I-29 ramp and in need of rescue.
7) Several minutes of live video cam footage in downtown Fargo on Sunday show nearly as many pedestrians as vehicles (which are few). One (of the pedestrians) is a skier.
6) Interstate 94 closes between Jamestown, N.D., and Alexandria, Minnesota, a distance of approximately 200 miles.
5) My son, in his second semester at North Dakota State University in Fargo, texts at 3:15 p.m. Sunday that “It’s pretty bad up here.”
4) West Acres, a West Fargo mall which does not open until noon on Sunday due to North Dakota’s Blue Law, closes at 2:30 p.m. Sunday. An employee of Helzberg Diamonds writes on the mall’s Facebook page: Its obviously bad outside. Clinics are also closed. If people can’t get medical help, you don’t need to shop.
3) The National Weather Service Office in Grand Forks issues this Monday morning forecast (in part) in its blizzard warning for the region:
NORTH TO NORTHWEST WINDS AT 25 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS TO AROUND 40 MPH WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THIS MORNING. BLOWING SNOW WILL REDUCE VISIBILITIES TO NEAR ZERO AT TIMES…ESPECIALLY IN OPEN AREAS.
2) No travel is advised on Sunday. In Fargo.
1) My son, who thought his snow days ended upon graduation from a Minnesota high school, gets a snow day. Classes are canceled today at North Dakota State University. I text him with the news at 9:15 p.m. Sunday.
His response: Yeah
© Copyright 2013 Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Minnesota Prairie Roots 
Oh, I remember all of the above–very well. Until I lived in Moorhead, I never knew what those swinging gates were on the highways or interstate. When they say “roads closed”, they swing those gates over the Hwy. post a Hwy patrolmen and you turn off the nearest exit and sit out the storm. I have a story about The Gopher Prarie Motel in Sauk Center!
Husband left the house at 4AM yesterday, drove to Mpls to take flight to Memphis. Left Memphis in thunderstorms (tornadoes in the area after he left), and flew to Grand Forks arriving late afternoon in near Blizzard conditions. I think the real blizzard conditions didn’t hit until after he arrived! Not to be deterred by a little blizzard–he and his first officer picked up our daughter and went out to eat last night! Silly people.
Has your son got to see a Snirt storm yet? When the snow and dirt combine in high winds–that’s lovely!
Stacey, I expected I’d be hearing from you. My goodness, what an eventful day your husband had what with the ice, the thunderstorms and then the blizzard. I cannot believe a plane could even fly into Grand Forks yesterday. Glad he was safe.
Nope, my boy has not experienced a Snirt storm yet. I’m not even going to tell him about those. He’s not particularly fond of Fargo weather, especially the wind.
Is your story about The Gopher Prairie Motel something that could be published? I’d love to hear it. I’ve seen the hotel sign from I-94 and have always wanted to drive up and check out the hotel as I’m a huge fan of Main Street by Sinclair Lewis, set in fictional Gopher Prairie.
We are “Moms” forever! When we lived in the Twin Cities Metro I asked DH if we could move further South……..here we are, for the past 39 yrs, in SOUTHeast MN!!! LOL!!!! We got rain…..a good thing or we would be totally under snow!!
Sometimes I think the rain is worse because of the resulting ice. I spent more than an hour this afternoon scraping and chipping ice from the sidewalk in front of our house. I didn’t even tackle the driveway.
The temps around us hovered just beneath 40F and have been quite warm for several days so only the gravel (drive way) was ice and all else was just wet, thankfully!! I think you got it a lot worse than us!
Apparently. We had rain, snow and sleet. Wet snow. Dry snow. There’s ice under the little bit of snow we got.
Be safe! Blessings……..
I cracked up at the response. Typical male response, right? I made it to MSP and back today but it was not a pleasurable drive by any means. Thank goodness there was not any more snow than there was or it would have been really horrible. I had one bad patch but my driver’s ed teaching kicked in and I drove through it safely. Hope Thursday is clear……did you hear me say hi when I passed Faribault?
Why did I not think of this earlier? You and/or Chris are always welcome to stay at our house on your way to/back from the airport. We have the space now and it would at least cut some time off your drive.
Our daughter is heading here from eastern Wisconsin today, so I hope the roads have improved. We drove to friends’ house on a back county road last night and the road was icy and snow-packed with blowing snow and drive speed of about 30 mph.
Well that is so sweet!!! It is only 2 hours but when it is that white knuckled driving it is stressful!!! I hope it is good today for your daughter’s driving and for me on Thursday when I am headed back up to fly out myself!!I am tired of the windy stuff!
Just keep us in mind for next time, OK, even this Thursday, as I hear a clipper is moving in.
I checked Minnesota 511 road conditions this a.m. and reports are a lot better than last night and roads look good except for the last 30 miles or so. But by the time she reaches Highway 60, maybe the highway will be clear.
Will be saying “weather prayers” for her today for sure. And thanks again. You are too sweet!
I’ve been there & done that – snow, snirt, closed highways (I got to stay at work rather than at a hotel!), whiteout conditions, 3 feet of snow in as many hours… and I don’t miss any of it!
We had two inches of rain last week here in Missouri (thankfully no ice) – it sure beats shovelling!
Neil
So you understand then why your nephew isn’t particularly fond of winter in Fargo. It’s been a long time since this prairie girl experienced a winter like that. I loved winter as a kid. Not so much as I age. Ice is the worse, the absolute worst.
The first time I’d ever heard of Fargo was from the movie. It was then that I discovered the weather must be really bad. It looks so cold! xx
Weather conditions in Fargo get especially bad due to the flat landscape (and we’re talking tabletop flat) and the wind, oh, the wind. I heard on the radio yesterday of a young family stranded for eight hours in the snow until they were rescued. This was in Minnesota, I believe. They survived because they had a tank of gas and were able to keep the car running. They were also dressed appropriately in warm outdoor attire. We’re all told to carry winter survival emergency kits in our vehicles. Along some roadways, actual gates can be swung across traffic lanes to close off the road when the weather gets really bad. These are called snow gates.
I’ve been hoping for a great storm for the past two years! Looks like I’m too far south…
Well, you know that I grew up in southwestern Minnesota, but a few counties north of you. I experienced plenty of blizzards. But, yes, if you’re looking for a real good old-fashioned winter, head north to Fargo. My son will vouch for that.
We’ve had a few great ones since I’ve been here – one which kept us stuck at home literally for 5 days and a couple that kept us for 3 days – but nothing for the past two years. I like them when everyone is home safe and we can hunker down and enjoy it!
Ah, got it. Too much time has elapsed since the last blizzard. I like that hunkering down during a snowstorm feeling, too, as along as everyone is home and safe.
Yeah, it’s zero fun if Colin is out of town!