First snow of the season seen in parts of Massachusetts

TEMPLETON - With Halloween in the rear-view mirror, it's starting to look more like winter in parts of Massachusetts.

Some parts of the state saw their first snowflakes of the season Wednesday morning. In the video above, you can see the flakes flying in Templeton.

The Wachusett Mountain webcam was also showing snow flurries.

In higher elevations, there was a solid coating of snow on the ground.

Those in Central and Western Massachusetts can expect some light snow during the day. Wednesday is the first day since Easter with a high temperature under 50 degrees in Boston, WBZ-TV chief meteorologist Eric Fisher noted.

In northern New England, Maine's Sugarloaf Mountain saw its first snow of the season on Monday. 

What's the snow forecast for Massachusetts this winter?

So how much snow can we expect in Massachusetts this winter? The National Weather Service recently released its 2023-2024 winter forecast, and it's predicting a warmer than average winter in the state.

A very strong El Nino, which is a warming of Pacific Ocean waters off South America, is driving the forecast that calls for milder temperatures and above-average precipitation up north.

But will that precipitation come as rain or snow? Forecasters say this is less clear. Even if this winter is warmer than usual, all it takes is one or a few major nor'easters to define the season. 

Past seasons with strong El Ninos has typically resulted in below average snowfall amounts for the Boston area.