Sandhills Forecast: Bitter Cold Continues; Weekend Snow Chance for Southern Pines, Pinehurst, Aberdeen

snow covered pine trees in kartepe turkiye

Sandhills Forecast: Bitter Cold Continues This Week With a Weekend Snow Chance

Updated: January 28, 2026 • Southern Pines / Pinehurst / Aberdeen / Carthage • North Carolina

The cold, dry pattern is holding across the Sandhills, and we’re also keeping an eye on a potential weekend system that could bring snow to parts of Moore County and surrounding areas. Morning lows stay in the teens and 20s, with daytime highs mainly in the 30s and low 40s. Right now, National Weather Service forecasts near Southern Pines and Pinehurst show snow chances increasing Friday night into Saturday.

Sandhills towns we’re watching

Forecast impacts can vary even within a short drive, so we’re tracking conditions for Southern Pines, Pinehurst, Aberdeen, Carthage, Vass, Whispering Pines, Seven Lakes and nearby communities—plus travel corridors into Hoke, Scotland, Richmond, and Lee counties.

Local travel heads-up: where icy spots show up first

Even when skies are clear, refreeze can be a problem overnight—especially on shaded stretches, bridges, and secondary roads. If you’re commuting early, use extra caution on:

  • US-1 through Southern Pines, Aberdeen, and into Sanford
  • US-15/501 (Pinehurst–Aberdeen corridor and toward Carthage)
  • NC-22 (Carthage area and west/east connections)
  • NC-211 (Candor/West End connections)
  • NC-690 (Vass/Fort Liberty direction)

For real-time road conditions, traffic cameras, and the Snow & Ice layer, check DriveNC.gov (NCDOT’s official travel site)

Sandhills forecast snapshot

Here’s the general trend for the next few days: cold mornings, chilly afternoons, and a weekend window to watch. For the Southern Pines/Pinehurst area, the latest NWS forecast indicates:

  • Thursday: Mostly sunny to partly cloudy, still cold
  • Friday night: Increasing chance for snow
  • Saturday: Snow more likely (timing/amounts still being refined)

As always with winter weather, small shifts in track and temperature can change impacts quickly—so we’ll keep updating as the data tightens up.

What this could mean for the Sandhills

If the weekend system produces snow, it may be on the lighter, drier side—but cold air sticking around means any accumulation can still create slick travel, especially on bridges and untreated roads. The bigger day-to-day issue through the week is refreeze each night into the early morning hours.

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