It’s been raining for almost three full days and watching the snow shrivel down to a thin, pocked, dirty mound could be depressing. But, in the name of  optimism, we came up with five great things about this late January rain-a-thon.

1. If you’re out skiing it in, the rain is a blast. The snow is always soft and spongy and there’s never anyone else out there to get in your way.

2. This rain will wash away the slick-as-Exxon ice layer that has been plaguing the ski areas for weeks.

3. This rain will percolate through the entire snowpack and eliminate the depth hoar layer that setup early in the season.

4. This rain will make an excellent, well-compacted base layer for the SNOW* that’s forecast for next week.

5. As the temperature drops, and the rain turns to snow, the snow will bond like glue, significantly decreasing avalanche danger on the next pow day.

*NOAA Says:

Today: Rain and snow showers. High near 38. Southwest wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 1 to 2 inches possible.

Tonight: Snow showers likely, mainly before 10pm. Cloudy, with a low around 30. Southwest wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.

Sunday: Snow showers. High near 31. West wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New snow accumulation of 2 to 4 inches possible.

Sunday Night: Snow showers. Low around 22. West wind around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%.

Monday: Snow showers likely. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 29. East wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60