Minnesota Experiencing One Of The Least-Snowy Decembers On Record

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Following a record-breaking October, Minnesota has only added about a half inch of snow this December.

The drought has us on track to tie the least snowy December ever.

That's good news for Amy Harl of Wayzata, who likes her sun and sand. Her young daughter, Lily, though, misses building snowmen and sledding.

We've seen more days with above-average temperatures than below-average ones. Todd Stauffer, an ice-fishing guide on Lake Minnetonka, needs some cold for the sake of the business he owns -- Set the Hook Guide Service.

"Some people will be scared [to book] because of the warmer weather," Stauffer said.

He says there are 5 inches of ice right now on Lake Minnetonka, which is enough for portable ice houses, but not for his full size ones, which require 8 inches of ice.

"Wednesday night, it's supposed to get down to zero and then the next day [should be] single digits, too," he said. "It should give us a couple more inches [of ice], which should get us there to get [the ice houses] out."

After more than 9 inches of snow in October, Stauffer says he thought he might get an early start and have the ice houses out in the beginning of December.

"I thought it was gonna be a long winter with a lot of snow," Harl said.