Snowish in Seattle

"Not a creature was stirring" - Downtown Seattle in the Great Snow of January 2012.

If this snow had come to upstate New York, no problem. Before the first snow flake hit the ground on Main Street, the plows would be moving out of the town garage. The day after a 24-inch snowfall, roads might still be a bit snowy, but usually passable.

But this was Seattle. On January 18, 2012, 6.8 inches of snow fell here, paralyzing the city. The snow was followed by an ice storm, which toppled huge evergreen trees onto the Interstates. For two days, little moved in the Seattle metropolitan area.

Landmark wrought iron pavilion, downtown Seattle, January 18, 2012.

In an average year, Seattle can count on a little over 8” of snow. You Nor'Easterners heard me right: that's 8" per year. It may not sound like much, considering what the NE gets. But receiving almost an entire year's worth of snow at one time is very rare. Unfortunately, it happened the morning of my first-ever trip to Seattle.

I was there visiting an old friend, who had always insisted that Pugetopolis – as the Puget Sound area is called by some – is God’s little paradise, especially in winter. “It never gets much below the 40s or so…” “It doesn’t rain as much as they say it does.” “It really warms up during the day.”

The visit was very different from how we envisioned it. The slushy streets remained unplowed. Few cars ventured out. The Monorail has a limited range - it runs between Seattle Center (where the Space Needle is) and a mall downtown. To reach either of the stations, we would have to slog though blocks of unshoveled sidewalks --not a happy prospect. Offices, some shops, museums and other attractions were closed. We didn't even think about going up into the famous Space Needle - even if it were open, the visibility was zero. No sense spending the $25 for a ticket. We set out by car to see what we could see.

"Pork'n Beans,"the mascot of Pike Place Market.

Pike Place Market near the waterfront was the only spot that seemed to have some activity. The historic Market opened in 1907, and is reported to be one of the oldest continuously-operated public farmers’ markets in the United States. It is a major tourist site, as well as a prime shopping spot for the workers in the nearby office buildings. Weekend visitors in the thousands jostle one another, shoulder-to shoulder, around the stalls. And it is Mecca for Starbuck’s-lovers – the company's first store opened there in 1971.

Snow day at Pike Place Market.

That day, however, the Market was almost empty, except for the stalwarts who managed to make it into town and set up shop. The Market is a collection of unheated arcades set on a steep hill leading down to the waterfront. In order to avoid slipping our way down the sidewalk, we ducked into one of the upper level doors.

Although all was cold, wet, and dreary outside, the Market was alive with color and lights and interesting things to buy. Fresh shrimp, crabs, and salmon were piled high in the fish stalls, looking as fresh as if the boat had just docked. A little farther down, two bundled-up women were minding a tidy stall selling chocolate-covered cherries - Washington State cherries, of course. They seemed happy to make conversation, since there were very few customers around. They were even happier when I bought three boxes to take back home.

Chukar Cherries, Pike Place Market, Seattle WA

A tulip stand was open a little farther down the row –Washington is famous for its beautiful tulips. The stall manager was wrapped in wool from head to toe, but still looked freezing. The open plastic panels that were intended to keep out the rain were certainly not up to this kind of weather.

Beautiful Washington State tulips - even if these are from the greenhouse!

Without exception, the workers in the stalls remained in amazingly good humor, in spite of everything. We eventually ran out of stalls that were open, so we meandered out into the street. We stopped at a small overlook to see the harbor. Everything looked quiet and still, even though it was the middle of the week. There was very little activity on the water, aside from the occasional ferry. All was ice and snow and silence.

U.S. Coast Guard ship, Seattle Harbor, Puget Sound, WA.

By this time, I needed to dry my socks, which were wet from the icy slush that had leaked into my shoes. We got back in the car, determined to at least tour as many sections of the city as possible in spite of the weather. While I dried my wet socks on the car heater, we drove around the University of Washington Campus. The school was closed, but exuberant students were everywhere - throwing snowballs, sledding, coasting down the hills on pieces of cardboard. It was all so festive – they looked like 8th graders unexpectedly granted a reprieve from a final exam.

University of Washington students giving Alma Mater a snowball salute.

After slipping and sliding around the city for much of the day, my friend and I decided that the better part of valor was to retreat to the warmth of a pub with a fireplace. I am pleased to report that there are a billion Irish pubs in the city of Seattle. OK, maybe not a billion, but more than 200 showed up on a local Internet directory. Although they consist of only 8% of Seattle’s Caucasian population, the Irish have certainly made inroads on the local gastronomic scene. And what could have been more perfect than an Irish Coffee on such a miserable day?

A source of some of that great Seattle Irish Coffee.

Since the weather never let up during my visit – nor did the snowplows ever show up - we drank a lot of Irish Coffee and ate some great meals over the next few days. Thank goodness, the wonderful restaurants of Seattle did not fail us, even though the weather may have!

For several weeks after the storm, the debate raged in the local press: “Does Seattle have enough snowplows?” “Too many snowplows?” The truth is that Seattle has 30 plows. That’s the entire fleet for the city. Now, 30 is probably more than enough for a couple of inches at a time, but clearly not enough for almost an entire year's worth of snow dumped on the city in a single storm. So what's the magic number? I guess it all depends on which direction climate change takes Seattle.

I hope to get back to Seattle and the State of Washington some day. They tell me it is a lovely place to see …. well ... when you can actually see it. Like my trip on the Coast Starlight, if you are thinking of traveling to the Northwest in the middle of January, you may want to wait until summer. The breezes are soft, the air warm, and you will have your pick of fabulous restaurants. If, however, you go in summer, you will miss the great adventure of a snowy day in Seattle!

Resources

Berger, Knute. Pugetopolis: A Mossback Takes on Growth Addicts, Weather Wimps, and the Myth of Seattle Nice. Seattle: Sasquatch Books, 2009.

Cohen, Aubrey. “Does Seattle have too many snowplows?” SeattlePI.com. Website. Published 09:04 p.m., Monday, January 30, 2012, URL accessed 11 February 2012: http://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/Does-Seattle-have-too-many-snowplows-2845381.php

“Does Seattle have enough snow plows?” KING 5 News. Website. Posted on January 31, 2012 at 8:43 AM; Updated Tuesday, Jan 31 at 8:48 AM URL accessed 11 February 2012:
http://www.king5.com/news/Does-Seattle-have-enough-snow-plows-138404359.html

Keane, John F., Irish Heritage Club. Irish Seattle. Charleston SC, San Francisco CA: Arcadia Publishing, 2007. 

McGuire, Terry. “Book Chronicles Irish Influence on Emerald City, Evergreen State.” Catholic New Progress (March 22, 2007). Republished on Arcadia Publishing, Inc. website, URL:
http://www.arcadiapublishing.com/news_article.html?id=745 accessed February 15, 2012.

Muhlstein, Julie. “Mukilteo Man Preserves Area’s Rich Irish Heritage.” The Herald (March 11, 2007). Republished on Arcadia Publishing, Inc. website, URL: http://www.arcadiapublishing.com/news_article.html?id=730 accessed February 15, 2012.

“Seattle's Irish: 1850 - 1900s.” The Irish Heritage Club of Seattle Washington. Official Website. URL
http://www.irishclub.org/misc.htm accessed February 15, 2012.

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