Get those snowblowers tuned up! Forecasters from AccuWeather are calling for an active winter season in New Jersey, New York and other states in the northeastern region.

However, the winter of 2019-2020 is likely to get off to a slow start, with just a touch of wintry weather in December before the season ramps up in January, AccuWeather says.

“I think its full force will hold out until after the new year,” said Paul Pastelok, a long-range forecaster for AccuWeather. “Whether or not it’s snowstorms, ice storms or mixed events, I do feel this is going to be an active year for the Northeast.”

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That means places like New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York City are likely to see above-normal snowfall this upcoming winter, according to AccuWeather’s early outlook.

Although winter doesn’t officially start until Dec. 21 on most calendars, the season kicks off Dec. 1 on weather calendars. That’s because meteorologists and climatologists base their seasons on average temperatures, and the coldest three months in most areas of the United States are December, January and February.

Areas shaded in pink, including northern sections of Sussex County, could see some frost on the ground Saturday morning, Oct. 5.AccuWeather

Chilly night ahead

After experiencing the warmest October day on record on Wednesday, many areas of New Jersey saw their temperature drop as much as 30 to 40 degrees from Wednesday afternoon to Thursday afternoon, after a cold front moved through the region.

Morning fog and clouds on Friday should give way to a warm and sunny afternoon, with temperatures in the 60s in northern New Jersey and around 70 in South Jersey. But gusty winds might make it feel a bit chillier.

A bigger cool-down will be coming overnight Friday into early Saturday morning, as temperatures drop to the mid-30s in Sussex and Passaic counties, around 40 degrees in Bergen, Essex and Morris counties, and the low to mid-40s in central New Jersey and even in interior sections of South Jersey, according to the National Weather Service.

AccuWeather says northern areas of Sussex County could see some frost on the ground Saturday morning. The good news: Temperatures across most of New Jersey should warm up to the low 60s Saturday afternoon, under mostly sunny skies.

Areas shaded in blue are under a frost advisory during the early-morning hours on Saturday, Oct. 5.National Weather Service

Frost alert in Sussex, Passaic and Warren

Update: Ahead of the chilly air Friday night, the National Weather Service has issued a frost advisory for all of Sussex County, all of Warren County and also for western Passaic County.

The Sussex and Warren advisories are in effect from 2 a.m. to 9 a.m. Saturday, and the Passaic advisory is active from midnight to 9 a.m. Saturday.

“Frost could damage or kill sensitive outdoor vegetation if it is left unprotected,” the weather service’s Mount Holly office said in its frost advisories, which also cover Carbon, Lehigh, Monroe and Northampton counties in eastern Pennsylvania. “Take steps now to protect tender plants from the cold.”

The Passaic frost advisory also covers Orange and Putnam counties in New York.

What a difference a day makes. The afternoon highs on Thursday, Oct. 3, were as much as 30 to 40 degrees cooler than they were just one day earlier, when record-breaking heat gripped New Jersey.Len Melisurgo | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Len Melisurgo may be reached at LMelisurgo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @LensReality or like him on Facebook. Find NJ.com on Facebook.