It's no secret that North Dakota gets a little snowy in the wintertime. In fact, it gets so snowy that it has become a state stereotype. We've even had someone ask us if we live in igloos up here. Seriously. Dealing with snow is just a part of living here, but some out-of-staters would be shocked to see just how much snow we tend to get, on average. Using data taken over many decades, we can even tell them just how much snow we get - and it's a bunch. Average yearly snowfall across the state ranges from 25-40 inches depending on where you are, but the snowiest place of all gets on average over 50 inches of snow. Can you guess which place gets that much snow and therefore is the snowiest city in North Dakota? It happens to be North Dakota's biggest city, and here's what it looks like:
North Dakota's snowiest city happens to also be its largest: Fargo.
The Coen brothers may have exaggerated on the accents in their famous movie with the same name as this city, but what they didn't exaggerate was the crazy amount of snowfall.
On average, Fargo gets about 51.6 inches of snowfall per year, according to the National Weather Service.
Snow falls throughout winter and even sometimes comes as far into spring as April or May!
This can create some absolutely beautiful scenery and lovely winter landscapes within the city, but it can also be the cause of familiar devastation that some Fargo residents know all too well.
The lethal combination of a previous seasons' heavy rainfall, winter's heavy snowfall, and frigid temperatures keeping the ground frozen for long periods of time sometimes causes the Red River - which runs along Fargo - to flood.
Fargo and its residents must band together to help prevent the hundreds of homes and businesses from getting overrun with water when this happens.
Sandbags are usually the way it's done, with thousands of volunteers making new bags together and using places like the Fargodome to gather and do so.
Through the 50+ inches of snow (and the flooding), Fargo residents still manage.
There are other North Dakota towns and cities that come pretty close to Fargo's current snowfall records. Bismarck is just behind Fargo at about 50 inches per year, and places like Jamestown, Grand Forks, Minot, and Bottineau all get more than 40 inches of snow on average. How snowy is it where you live? Have you ever visited the snowiest city in North Dakota? A lot of people can't wait for winter to be over when it's happening, but it does turn North Dakota's landscapes into beautiful snowy wonderlands for the prettiest pictures sometimes! For proof of this, check out these beautiful photos of North Dakota in winter.
And don't forget to wear your coziest winter coats if you plan to visit!
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