A December more like it used to be…sort of. Well, we had nine and a half inches of snow, the most in 2 years. My snowblower was out and ready. But alas, the rain came to wash it away. Actually, we were glad after a period of nearly three months with little or no rain causing severe drought conditions. Between August 26th, and the start of the Butternut fire, my station recorded nearly 70 days with no rain along with very low dew points. The lower the dew point, the drier the air.
So, the rains and the snow we got did the job of helping fire fighters gain control of the fire.
The month ended up being the 11th wettest this century.
But Mother Nature did give us a white Christmas, such as it was, before the near record warmth washed it away!
This December, like last winter, featured Mother Nature’s see-saw weather patterns of a little snow and a lot of rain.
Overall, the precipitation this December was slightly above average after 3 very dry months. The year’s total rainfall and melted snow, which is what the state hydrologist wants to see, came to 47.01 inches, 3 inches below this century’s 50-inch average and 10 inches less than 2023.
To wrap up the final month’s weather of 2024, it was slightly cooler, slightly wetter with more rain and less snow.
As I write this on New Year’s day, we started the year with a half inch of rain and then a very promising winter-like forecast from NOAA and my Weather Underground website, saying a colder than average January may be on the way.
My snowblower is out of its summer storage and ready and so am I.
My hopes are up for snow blowing and maybe snow shoeing
Have a great January.
