So long September, Now the real Autumn begins

October is here and the real autumn will step up and be noticed. September turned out to be a pretty warm month. I had average temps well above my 13 year normal. Overnight lows averaged nearly 54 degrees 2.5 above normal. Highs hovered just north of 77 degrees averaged over the month, that's 3 degrees above the established norm. The hottest day was the 6th when I measured 96.4 degrees and that was the third hottest day of the year. Speaking of hot, this past September recorded an impressive four days above 90 degrees. All told this year has delivered 11 days above the 90 mark. The coldest temp last month was a mild, 45.3 on the 4th. The coolest afternoon high came on the 29th when the merc topped out at 61.7. The warmest overnight low arrived on the 22nd with 61.1.

The month seemed to be rainy but really was about half of normal with my bucket collecting a mere 1.29 inches against my baker's dozen of years averaging 2.47. I had 9 days with something dripping in the rain gauge but only 6 days mustered more than trace. The wettest day was the 23rd with 0.61 inches.

October is a month that sees the Autumn plunge in full swing. Temperatures will plummet from an average high of 70 on the 1st to and average high of 52 on Halloween. The leaves are starting to flash a little color and the sun sinks fast in the west. Get ready to enjoy the brightest display of flora in the next few weeks.

Soak it up my friends, soak it up.

A Slippery September has Slid into the Books

Daily Rainfall for September

How's that title for a tongue twister? September was quite wet in fact it was the wettest month of 2013, thus far. I recorded more than five inches of rain in a month I typically see less than two and half. That says as much about our dry winter and spring as it does for a damp late summer.

The temperatures were a touch chilly by day and a tad warm by night compared to my long term averages. That said I also recorded the hottest day of 2013, a blistering 94.6 on the 11th. I think that will stick at this point lest we break the all time heat record for October by 5 or 6 degrees. The lowest afternoon high was a cool 53.7 on the 27th. September's evenings were comfy as we enjoyed mild temps most of the month with an average overnight low of just under 55 degrees, the warmest was 62.4 on the 2nd and the chilliest came in at 43.8 on the 19th. The wettest day of this watery month came on the 28th when 1.55 inches fell. That was the second day this past month with over an inch of rain. Although the rain gauge had 5.23 inches for the month, there were only 11 rainy days compared to 13 sunny days.

Daily Temperatures for September

The Autumn Plunge I have talked about this past month is well under way. By Halloween our highs will struggle to get into the mid 50s. It is time to break out the sweaters if you don't like it chilly. For me it is not quite sweater weather yet. I will be watching for our first frost and freeze of the year. I find that both typically arrive in October with a frost in the first ten days and a hard freeze by week three.

I am noticing that some of the early turners have begun to flash some color. Of course, I am talking about autumn leaves. Here in the Northwest we are granted a gift of brilliant and beautiful color as recompense for a precipitous drop in temperature.

Looking ahead to winter, the almanacs are suggesting a cold and snowy season awaits on the other side of Thanksgiving. Those ancient periodicals The Farmer's Almanac and The Old Farmer's Almanac, that have been continuously published since 1818 and 1792 respectfully, are both pointing to reduced solar activity and oceanic conditions in their predictions of a frigid winter. Hmm, we are due for a snowy winter. Last time I had more than ten inches of snow was 2008-09 and that was five years ago. Almanac, schmalmanac, I have my own anecdotal evidence and I think were in for white winter this year. So get outside and soak it up my friends, soak it up.