I'm really hoping for snow, especially with new owners over at Timberline in the highlands of WV, but as warm as it's been this year during the rut, I'm not going to expect anything but a mild winter again.
Its been trending warmer the past 3 years. Usually up here where I am we get our first snow in October and half the month of November has snow on the ground. We haven't had our first accumulating snow yet or daytime temperatures below freezing which is way warmer than normal.
The squirrels in my neighborhood are heavier and thicker-coated than I've ever seen them in the past 30+ years. My Virginia mountain family always used to say that was "a sign" foretelling a hard winter.