For more information about the Maine Cooperative Snowpack Survey, go to: http://www.maine.gov/rfac/rfac_snow.shtml

For more information about the Off Road Vehicle Division Snowmobile Program, go to: http://www.maine.gov/doc/parks/programs/snowmobile/index.html

AUGUSTA — Winter is over, but there’s still a lot of snow out there.

“We’re way above normal in how long it’s holding on (due to colder temperatures), said Robert Johnston, a Maine Geological Survey senior geologist. “The state hasn’t warmed up yet.”

The Maine Cooperative Snow Survey is conducted annually to help determine potential spring flooding with the development of flood-forecasting models.

The data are shared with the Maine Emergency Management Agency and county emergency officials.

In January, the Maine Cooperative Snow Survey team, including local and governmental entities and private businesses, went to 75 locations around the state to take the first snowpack measurement.

In March, the survey team began weekly inventories of the snowpack and now are in their eighth week. They are expected to complete the full 12 weeks this year, Johnston said.

This week, 69 snowpack sites around Maine were surveyed, and overall, “It’s still good for the skiers,” Johnston said.

Statewide, “it looks like we have a lot of snow in the St. John, Allagash and Penobscot river basins,” Johnson said.

Northwestern Maine still has snowpack 24 to 30 inches deep, with 8 to 12 inches of water content.

The deepest snow was found in Carrabassett Valley, with 33.4 inches; the most water content was found in Greenville, with 12.6 inches, the release stated.

The smallest amount of snow was found in West Kennebunk, with 2.8 inches of snow and 1 inch of water. One site in Falmouth had no snow, Johnston reported.

Johnston said rivers appear to be open and not very high, and there have been some “melting events.”

At Screw Auger Falls in Grafton Notch State Park, “you can see that the water has been upwards of 3 feet higher,” Johnston said.

The pattern of cool weather and cool nights is beginning to change, the geologist said. “If you did have warm temps and a rain, the snow could melt in a hurry,” he said.

Snow is still available for snowmobiling, as well, said Scott Ramsay, director of the Off Road Vehicle Division of the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands.

Ramsay said there was “at least one more weekend left” of good snowmobiling, mostly off trail in areas north of Jackman; Moosehead Lake/Pittston Farm; Kokadjo; Chesuncook Village to the Allagash Wilderness Waterway; the Jo-Mary Pond area in Piscataquis County; and Millinocket.

Ramsay recommended that snowmobilers call ahead to local clubs and businesses because remote lodges are starting to close for mud season and fuel for snowmobiles may be an issue.

“Ice is becoming dangerous near any rivers, streams and impoundments with currents, so hiring a local guide from a lodge or rental facility would be wise,” Ramsay said.

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