Snow falls in the NC mountains Saturday for the first time this season, NWS says
Snow fell across the North Carolina mountains Saturday for the first time this season, National Weather Service meteorologists confirmed.
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The snow ranged from flurries in one part of the mountains to a snow-ice mix at 6,643-foot Kuwohi, the highest peak in the Great Smoky Mountains formerly known as Clingmans Dome, according to the NWS.
Kuwohi is in Swain County, nearly 200 miles northwest of Charlotte.
The NWS office in Greer, S.C., retweeted video of wind-whipped snow at Licklog Ridge Overlook, also called Licklog Gap Overlook, by Western NC storm chaser and photographer Josh Griffith. The overlook is in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Haywood County, 160 miles northwest of Charlotte.
The NWS was notified of the Licklog Ridge Overlook snowfall at 6:30 a.m., NWS meteorologist Jake Wimberley told The Charlotte Observer.
Just before that time, sustained winds in that area were recorded at 36 mph, Wimberley said.
And a colleague spotted on a webcam video what appeared to be flurries at Beech Mountain Saturday morning. “They were only in the air,” Wimberley said. “You could barely see them.” Beech Mountain is in Avery and Watauga counties 125 miles northwest of Charlotte.
A heavy dusting of snow was seen on the rooftop of LeConte Lodge on 6,593-foot Mount LeConte in Tennessee, Wimberley said.
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Video on social media also showed snow tossed furiously about by winds at 6,684-foot Mount Mitchell in Yancey County
The snow coincided with a drastic temperature drop. On Friday, we were in shorts and short sleeves in most of the state. On Saturday, the high in Charlotte stood at a chilly 59 degrees just before 11 a.m., according to the NWS forecast.
At 7:30 a.m. Saturday, the NWS reported that Mount Mitchell stood at 22 degrees with a wind chill of 19 degrees. “Winter arrived early!” the NWS said on social media site X. Mount Mitchell is 157 miles northwest of Charlotte.
A freeze warning has been issued for the mountains from 1 a.m. to 8 a.m. Sunday, when lows could plummet to the upper 20s.
First snow of the season for the North Carolina mountains!
Snow, ice and heavy winds at Kuwohi in the Smokies this morning. 29° at the time of this recording. @TawanaAndrew @BGoodeWAVE3 @MarcWeinbergWX @BryceJonesWx @JudeRedfield @jloganwxguy @Kentuckyweather @JustinEsterlyWx @cjwxguy56 @WeatherNation @foxweather @KevinHarned https://t.co/rR3ndVLrKI
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This story was originally published October 17, 2026 at 11:39 AM.
