Category Archives: Weather

How Strong Were the Winds?

What's wrong with this picture?


Coverage of yesterday’s arctic blast on the Kitsap Sun web site has attracted hundreds of reader comments. Most describe problems encountered while commuting over the county’s icy roads or how people coped when the power went out last night. No one mentioned the hardship I will remember longest about the storm: more than 12 hours of frigid almost-continuous gale-force winds from the north. The photo shows one casualty of the gale.
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Snowed In Again

The steepest part isn't shown


Winter is apparently here, roughly a month early if you go by the calendar. It has been snowing lightly off and on all day, and the forecast calls for below-freezing temperatures tonight and tomorrow. Plus high winds. I’m already snowed in (see photo). The conditions aren’t as bad as they were two years ago, but are notable enough for a blog entry.
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A New Furnace

Layers. Lots of layers. That’s what I wore and that’s what covered the bed at night during the recent four-day period when I was without heat. And while I wouldn’t recommend turning off your furnace in late December in western Washington, it can be done as long as the weather cooperates.
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How Cold Was It?

Belfair's Frozen Fountain

Western Washington is slowly emerging from a week-long dry cold snap that set numerous records for the coldest day in history on (fill in the date) in (fill in the location). The forecast for today in Bremerton is mixed snow and rain showers with a high temperature near 40 degrees—IOW, just about back to typical December weather. But last week there was a low of 6 degrees one night in Olympia. In Bremerton it was below freezing for four straight days with lows in the teens at night. On the morning of December 8th the temperature was 10 degrees at Bremerton National Airport. Brr.

I don’t know the exact temperatures for Belfair last week but offer the photo, taken today, of the fountain in the QFC shopping center as evidence that the artic blast didn’t skip North Mason. The fountain itself is still running. The blue color in the ice may be caused by antifreeze in the system needed to keep the water in the pump and pipes from freezing.

Four of a Kind

SSRSSForecast

The forecast is for symmetry


The five-day forecast (see screen capture) for Bremerton from today’s Seattle Times is symmetrical—a palindrone of predictions. My poker-playing dad would say it contains four of a kind, a pretty good hand. Last night the TV weather person went on and on about low pressure areas coming from BC followed by a weak high and then a cold front. To me, the forecast is fairly typical for this time of year in Bremerton, which averages 8.19 inches of rain in November. One good thing: rain keeps the Mudcat a little closer to home.

River View

Skokomish River Bend

Skokomish River


Before I left home this morning I already knew that the National Weather Service had canceled its flood warning for the Skokomish River. Yesterday’s storm, which dumped more than 2.5 inches of rain on the Skokomish River watershed, caused the river to rise but left it just under the 16-foot flood stage. While I didn’t see any flooding—except for a few spots where the high-water signs on the Skokomish Valley Road are permanently posted—my day trip took me past one of my favorite spots along the river.
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