UPDATE: Grand Marais and most of Cook County largely miss first round of snow as blizzard warning continues

UPDATE: As of 9:20 p.m., most of Cook County still had far less snow than anticipated. Grand Marais had a couple inches of slop on the ground. Slop, in this instance, refers to heavy, wet snow. The streets and sidewalks and yards are messy with the slop. Temperatures in the mid 30s made for a mixture of rain and snow throughout the day in and around Grand Marais.

At 9 p.m., WTIP received a report from the end of the Sawbill Trail that about 5 inches of snow fell during the day and early evening Wednesday.

In Finland, Minn., 13 inches of snow came down Wednesday, according to a report sent to WTIP.

A blizzard warning remains in effect until 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 15. The National Weather Service says parts of Cook County could still receive more than a foot of additional snow by the end of the day Thursday.

In related news, Cook County School District ISD 166 will have an E-Learning Day on Thursday.

There will be no school at Great Expectations School in Grand Marais on Thursday. (No E-Learning at GES)

Due to dangerous travel conditions in several areas of the county this evening, students at ISD 166 should follow the E-Learning Day schedule tomorrow as directed by their teachers. All after-school activities are also canceled for Thursday. The band concert will be rescheduled.

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From original report at 1 p.m.

Snow reports are varying dramatically in and around the WTIP listening area today. As of 1 p.m., it was snowing in Grand Marais, with little to no accumulation.

At 12:20 p.m., WTIP talked with city officials in Silver Bay who said there was about 6.5 inches of snow on the ground. About 28 miles up Highway 61, at the Tofte General Store, there was almost no snow on the ground. It was raining, or mixed precipitation, in Tofte as of 12:25 p.m.

Up the Gunflint Trail, as of 12:10 p.m., there was minimal accumulation on the paved roadway, though it was snowing on and off for most of the morning.

A blizzard warning from the National Weather Service remains in effect for Cook County and the North Shore through Thursday, Dec. 15. Cook County School District ISD 166 is ending school an hour early on Dec. 14.

Meanwhile, the National Weather Service is reporting nearly 10.5 inches near Duluth as of noon on Wednesday.