Help this Floridian find Snow in January!

[Lizzy]

I have lived in FL my whole life. The only "snow" I have seen was in Washington- on top of Mt Ranier in July. It was slushy and summer. So it was nothing to write home about.

None of my 3 children have ever seen it. My 13 year old is begging to see it, and I would love to myself.

We would like to plan and January trip and drive up to see it. I would not like to drive more than a day, since that would also mean a full day drive back. With 3 kids and one of them still in diapers this is already a huge undertaking.

Am I being unrealistic? Can I get from Brevard County FL to a snow covered place in January in a day? We don't need a huge resort, just a hotel near snow we can play in for a day or 2 before heading back home.

what are your suggestions?

[Dsnygirl]

Hi!

I am from Upstate NY, so I can tell you we have TONS of snow up here for your enjoyment... but it's much longer than a day's drive... more like 18-19hrs. We've done the drive to Disney - but it definitely requires an overnight, at least for us.

Looking at places south of us, though, that you could get to in 14 hours or so?? Louisville, KY is about that distance, and googling their weather info, it says they get about 10 inches or so in January, although it melts quickly.

The western portion of Virginia, say Roanoke area, is about 12 hrs from you, and supposedly they get a decent amount of snow b/c of the mountains... further east, not so much.

I think you'll have to be prepared to drive at LEAST 12 hrs to get to a snowy area, and it may not be something you can plan too far out, unless you were coming much further north - we almost ALWAYS have snow, but even our January weather has been weird the past few years, my DH was golfing 3 January's ago.

Good luck - it sounds like it would be a fun wknd for you guys!!

[DisneyDINK]

Smoky Mountains maybe? Still, that's a 12 hour drive each way.

Then again, what do I know; I'm a 2 hour drive from Mt. Ranier.

[Lizzy]

Then again, what do I know; I'm a 2 hour drive from Mt. Ranier.

lol, I waved to you when I was 15. Hope you saw me. I waved to everything I could see


12 hours is about what we are expecting. Maybe I should expect more?

Another reason I would like to keep the drive as short as possible is, I drive a teeny tiny honda civic. And it's a standard. no way I am taking that thing full of kids and luggage up a mountain. So we will have to rent a safer vehicle for this trip. So more gas $ and the more days I rent the car the more $ I spend.

[Melanie]

I'd go to the mountains of NC or GA, Lizzy.

[Dopey's Girl]

My Aunt has a vacation home in the NC mountains (can't call it a cabin, it's a mansion on the mtn.) and I know they have snow all winter, but that might be a longer drive than you are looking for.

You can come to my house in MN, we would gladly escape the snow come January!

[minnie04]

We have done Tennessee. When we are craving the cold, but not Buffalo, NY cold (where I’m from), but a nice cold new year. We have been lucky to get snow in the Smoky Mts. It's just enough to play and have fun all day. The Kids love it Can't wait to go this year !! I hope its a really cold winter

That drive can be done in a day if you leave really early. We have made it in one day. Or a quick stop for rest. It's so worth it..

[TinkerbellT421]

Guaranteed snow would be buffalo, ny for sure. I would say New England, ie Rhode Island, Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire, but with RI it can be iffy, sometimes we have snow, sometimes it's a freak blast of the 60's lol

Scratch my thought, just realized you are looking for a days drive with young ins, so a straight shot day wouldn't cut it getting to these places.

[buzznwoodysmom]

My boys have been asking to go see snow too. We've been to Colorado with them in the snow when they were 3 and 5, but they barely remember it now.

I've thought about doing what OP is asking. Finding a place with snow that we can drive to for a weekend, but you really can't plan these kinds of things ahead of time. Most places within a day's drive of us have no guarantee of snow. I'm pretty sure I'd have to watch the forecast and plan it no more than a week out.

This is not the same thing as real snow, but you may want to look into Stone Moutain Georgia. In the winter they turn a lawn into a "Snow Mountain" park. I don't know if they still do this, but a few years ago we looked into it. We didn't end up going, but it looked pretty fun, especailly for kids who don't ever get to see snow. It was machine made snow and they had different areas of the park set up. They had tubing lanes, a snowman building section, and so on. You could also visit the Stone Mountain park attractions while there, so it could make for a fun little weekend and it's not too far from you. Just something to think about.

I am pretty sure Stone Mountain Park has a few partener hotels nearby, but I would suggest Lake Lanier Island, which I think it just north of Stone Mountain. We stayed at the Legacy Lodge on Lake Lanier Island a few years ago and fell in love with it. We were there in the summer, but I'm sure it's just beautiful in the winter.

[Lizzy]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I am looking into Asheville NC area. Google shows it being less than a 12 hour drive. So accounting for the little ones and stops, it could take us up to 15 hours. Both DBF and I are night owls and could leave in the evening and drive all night taking turns to make it as straight through as possible.

The Asheville website says their average for Jan-Feb is 4.5 inches. Is that enough to play in? It says it's close to a mountian so maybe we could take time and go over to the mountain to have better luck?

[Kenny1113]

NC snow can be hit or miss. We have gone several times when there was snow and times when we were hoping for snow and just missed it.
There are ski areas that will make snow if there is not enough.

Have fun!

[BrerGnat]

When you see snow "averages", that is the average amount of snowfall for that ENTIRE month. It's like rainfall amounts. It doesn't mean that there is an average of 4.5" on the ground all month.

I'd honestly wait until they are a little bit older (OUT of diapers entirely) and then plan a weekend trip to a ski resort. You've gotta be aware that playing in the snow requires a LOT of clothing that you don't have. You need coats, hats, waterproof gloves, snow pants, etc. You do NOT want to deal with all that when one of your kids is still in diapers! Most ski resorts have stuff like snow tubing and play parks, so you don't have to actually ski or snowboard. There are snow parks all over the country, but it's up to mother nature whether there will be snow or not.

Also, regarding driving. Your car is not the issue when driving...your tires are. If there is NO SNOW on the road, any car can drive up a mountain. If there is snow, then they start putting up restrictions and chain requirements, etc. So, you can use your car, but you should probably carry a set of chains and know how to install them if necessary. You never know when the weather might turn and dump a bunch of snow on you after you arrive, even if there wasn't snow on the road before. The weather up in most mountain areas is unpredictable.

I've driven up some fairly major mountain roads in CA (Lake Tahoe area and Big Bear) in a Civic. Not an issue. But, I wouldn't consider driving up if there are chain requirements in place. Going 15 mph max is not my idea of fun on a trip to see snow. It can take HOURS just to get to the top or bottom as everyone has to, literally, crawl along.

[Lizzy]

Waiting would be good. But my ODS is turning 14 this year. He is still in Middle School and once he gets into High School it will be too much to pull him out of school for a few days.

My YDS is almost 5 and my DD is almost 2. She is potty training now and there is a chance she will be trained by January, except maybe at night or on a long car trip.

I know there is gear and stuff we will need. That's why I am trying to get started on planning early.

My car is an issue because we barely fit in it as a family. My 14 year old has to sit sideways between the carseats pretty much. Plus its a standard and I live in FL, there are very few hills to have to manipulate. I drove it to north FL one time and stalled all over the place So renting something bigger would be more ideal.

I just was hoping that taking the kids to see snow wouldn't be a huge undertaking. I guess I was wrong.

[BrerGnat]

I just was hoping that taking the kids to see snow wouldn't be a huge undertaking. I guess I was wrong.

Believe me, I know what you are saying! We could have taken our boys up to see snow at Big Bear while we were living in CA, but by the time my youngest was potty trained (and tall enough to at least ride in the snow tubes at the snow park), it just seemed like such an overwhelming thing when I realized we had NO winter gear at all. LOL!

We moved to VA last summer and I was hoping to see snow last winter. We got a small amount (about 3") and my older son enjoyed it a lot. The little one...not so much! He actually didn't seem to like it at ALL. So, I am kinda glad we didn't make some big journey up the mountain in CA *just* to see snow.

We'll see about this year. Perhaps after the initial "what the heck is that stuff" last year, my younger one (who is 6, by the way) might be more into it when (if?) we have more snow this year.

Can you take your older two kids and leave the little one with someone at home? Just a thought to simplify things...