He does great things which we cannot comprehend. For He says to the snow, ‘Fall on the earth.’ Job 37:5-6
Three woolly worms on the same porch. Three different predictions for winter snows.
Let me explain.
For those of you who live far beyond our Appalachian Mountains, the banded woolly worm is a cute, gentle, nonpoisonous caterpillar in shades of golden brown and black. Pick one up, and it will tickly-crawl all over your hand. If threatened, it will curl up into a tiny cinnamon roll.
Right now, this is the woolly worms’ time to shine. You’ll see them skittering across warmed asphalt roads, grabbing the last rays of warm sunshine before they go into a frozen state of suspended animation for winter. At a pace of only four miles an hour, they desperately scoot past the wheels of oncoming vehicles…and I confess I have unavoidably smushed a few.1
They start life as the eggs of a pyrrharctia isabella, or golden-yellow Isabella tiger moth with black markings. But their fall season has inspired centuries of winter weather predictions.
Like the groundhog’s shadowy predictions for spring, the woolly worm’s hairy colors are supposed to give an almanac-ish glimpse of the future. Its 13 bands indicate the amount of snow to be expected. More black means a wintertime dominated by snow and cold. More brown, a lighter season.2
This humble little creature has also inspired multiple festivals, including one at Banner Elk, N.C., just over the mountains from us. This Woolly Worm Festival features races between a thousand woolly worms climbing up strings.
This year’s race winner, named Wally, was also the weather predictor. Its bands revealed a forecast beginning with a cold and snowy week followed by two weeks of average temperatures. Week four is expected to bring a chilly week of light snow or frost, ushering in eight weeks of average weather. If Wally’s right, we’ll have a very mild winter, with one last-minute chill before spring arrives.3
However, where I’m visiting in Virginia for a writers’ conference, three different woolly worms have crept onto the front porch providing three different predictions—one almost solid brown, one almost solid back, and one with distinct bands of both colors. Will we see all-mild weather, all-snowy, or a mixed season of both?
Welcome to life in the South where there’s no such thing as perfect weather…no right amount of rain when you want it, and no snowfall when the kids want a break from school. Outdoor weddings here? Better rent a tent to keep your guests comfortable.
In Bible days, weather was a constant source of angst as farmers watched the skies for signs of necessary rainfall as well as dryness required for a successful harvest. Growers also had to worry about sporadic raids by locusts, and even Jonah was frustrated by a hungry worm that destroyed his shade.
No one can predict the future.
What we can count on, however, is that our future is in God’s hands. As our sovereign Lord, He has already planned the weather.
It’s hard to watch when clouds usher in disastrous winds with tornadoes and hurricanes, hail and blizzards. Even weather experts can’t fully predict these events, but we can be assured that some sort of climate disruption will eventually befall us.
In those times, we turn to the skies as the biblical farmers did. Will we believe that meteorological changes are just a capricious whim of Earth’s atmospheric currents? Or will we see that God is still in control of the elements, even when we’re not?
Our faith is put to the test every day when we don’t know what to expect. Weather or work or health or stock markets…we could worry about every unpredictable aspect of our lives.
Jesus, however, gives us the ultimate prediction in His word. Whatever happens on our tiny planet, we can count on His faithfulness. He loves us and will never leave us. Remember He has promised He will come again someday. Once and for all, He will bring us the redemption for which we have longed.
In anticipation of that day, the lowly woolly worm is a good reminder that we are helpless without Jesus. We have no way to predict the changes in our lives. But He knows His plans for our future…“plans to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11). In His arms, you are shielded…no matter what the skies throw against you. And no matter what color woolly worm comes crawling across your porch.
Creator God, Author of all forms of beautiful life on our globe, I thank You for Your attention to the big and small things here. Thank You for holding me when storms threaten, for keeping my soul in Your care when I don’t know where to turn. Help me put one step in front of the other, to prepare with wisdom, and to leave the rest in Your loving hands. Grant me Your peace. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Nancy C. Williams is a Christian wife/mom with a writing career spanning more than 40 years in business and journalism. Williams is the author of the novel To Love a Falcon and the devotional book A Crocus in the Desert: Devotions, Stories, and Prayers for Women Experiencing Infertility. Her blogs are featured on Crossmap.com and AriseDaily. To follow Nancy’s posts and news, go to her home page at NancyCWilliams.com and subscribe at the bottom.
© Copyright 2026 Nancy C. Williams (text and photography). Unless otherwise noted, Scripture verses are taken from the New King James Version®, Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved. #JesusChrist #faithjourney #Christianliving #faithoverfear #walkwithGod #faith #kingdomlife #Christianencouragement #Biblestudy #dailydevotional #Godisgood #Redeemer #Savior #prayerwarrior #Christianity #Jesus #God #Christian #Bible #trust #love #church #Christ #prayer #Bibleverse #presenceofGod #HolySpirit #woolyworm #woolywormfestival #caterpillar #winterprediction
1https://www.massaudubon.org/news/latest/why-did-the-woolly-bear-cross-the-road
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One response to “Wintry Signs from Woolly Worms”
Thank you foryour sweet blog of the wooly worm. Have a blessed week! Francine
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