Snow Fences in Whatcom County

Snow fences northwest of Lynden, Washington

I had a field trip northwest of Lynden, Washington yesterday and spotted these snow fences in a pasture and on a field of corn stubble. It is the only snow fence I have ever seen in western Washington. Washington State weather geeks are well aware that when cold Arctic air enters western Washington there are very strong northeast winds that blow across Whatcom County. A weather joke is that Seattle TV stations always send their reporters north of Bellingham when an Arctic front is blowing across Whatcom County so they can stand in a the freezing wind and pronounce cold temperatures are on the way to Seattle. 

Snow covered pasture, corn stubble or hay fields do little to stop blowing snow. The farmland around Lynden gets huge drifts with miles of treeless fields. A few homes are located across the road from this particular field and hence the snow fences to stop drifts of snow piling up around the houses.