Parts of Ontario about to be walloped with up to 30 cm of snow

Although the official start of the winter season is still a few weeks away, plenty of snow will be coming Ontario's way to close out November with a bang. 

While most of the major snowfall is expected to hit northern Ontario, the southern portion of the province is also in for a "multi-day lake-effect snow event," according to the latest report by The Weather Network. 

Starting late Tuesday, a low-pressure system is set to develop just south of Lake Superior, which will extend through Thursday. A winter storm watch is already in effect, and the most precipitation is expected to descend upon highways through northwestern Ontario and Lake Superior's north shore. 

"A swath of heavy snow is forecast along the Minnesota border in northwestern Ontario, between Fort Frances and Thunder Bay, which will impact travel along Highway 11 between the communities, as well as the Trans-Canada Highway between Thunder Bay and Dryden," The Weather Network notes. 

Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) also warns that roads and walkways might be difficult to navigate, and visibility could be reduced to near zero at times. 

The highest-risk areas are quite far away from the GTA, and will be between Thunder Bay, Geraldton, Marathon, and Moosonee, which could see snowfall between 2o to 30 centimetres, as well as wind gusts of 60 to 80 km/h. 

Still, snowfall amounts will depend on the storm's path, which, the weather agency says, could "drastically change who sees 15 cm of snow and who sees 30 cm." 

Unfortunately, southern Ontario isn't getting off scot-free and will still feel the system's effects despite being out of its path. Just before the weekend, the system is expected to send Arctic air across the Great Lakes, dropping temperatures quickly from a high of 10 degrees C on Wednesday to a high of 2 degrees C on Thursday. 

"Strong winds of 60-80 km/h off the lakes will funnel the lake-effect snow squalls into the snowbelts downwind of Lake Huron and Georgian Bay, but we may even see the squalls and heavy snow reach into the Greater Toronto Area (GTA)," the weather agency writes. 

"Expect to face poor winter driving and whiteout conditions if travelling through the snow belts Thursday and Friday. We may even see some road closures during the squall activity." 

Snow-rain showers are expected to begin in Toronto on Wednesday evening and transition to wet snow by Thursday morning. After a small, sunny break on Friday, more snow is forecast for Saturday night into Sunday, when we'll see lots of mixed precipitation, from snow to snow-rain showers. 

We hate to be the bearer of bad news, but if you were holding out hope for a longer fall, it looks like winter is moving in early and doesn't plan on leaving anytime soon.