Temp got to 0*C today (having a cold spell) which is about 5* cooler than normal. However, when I was a kid we usually had several centimetres of snow on the ground by now. It seems that with global warming we've been getting an extended "fall" season more often and later into the calendar year.

BTW, I always get a kick out of you Americans when you say "northern plains" or "northern Rockies"! The plains and Rocky mountains physically go all the way up to the Yukon territory.