Snow on mountains above 1,500 m as cold front brings rain and strong winds

A cold, moist air mass from the north will bring a marked drop in temperatures and renewed precipitation to North Macedonia, with rain in lowlands and intermittent snow on mountain peaks above 1,500 metres, forecaster Slavcho Poposki said.

When and where

Poposki warned that the first pulse arrives on Tuesday, 13 October, and that another, more pronounced episode is expected over the weekend — especially on Saturday, 17 October. Local rain of moderate intensity is likely in many areas, while higher terrain above 1,500 metres will see occasional snowfall that can form a layer between 5 and 10 centimetres.

“Occasionally strong to gale northerly and northwesterly winds will blow, which especially in the Vardar region will at times reach speeds above 60 km/h,” Poposki said. He added that Skopje and its surrounding basin will also experience intermittent moderate rain and gusty northerly to northwesterly winds that in parts of the region and the basin can exceed 60 km/h.

Daytime temperatures will fall significantly across the country. Minimum morning values will drop as well, but cloud cover should keep most lowland minima above zero, with the exception of the high mountains above 1,500–1,600 metres where temperatures will fall below freezing.

Through the period, most places will see daytime highs around or below 15 °C. In the Vardar region, the Skopje basin and southeastern areas, daytime temperatures can climb near 20 °C and locally even a little above 20 °C at times.

“All in all, true autumn is here, and snow is coming to the mountains above 1,500 metres, which is a very normal occurrence for this time of year,” Poposki said.

Photo: press material from the event