September is usually a month of contrast and this one was sort of like that.
Very summer-like the first 14 days of September with three 90-degree days and high humidity. Then came more traditional September days with temperatures we associate with the month. But no frost or freeze at my station.
On September 22nd, Anita noticed the inevitable: Our maple tree’s first color change. I rushed out to get a photo of the only leaf starting to lose its greenness of summer, which I include with this monthly summary. Thank goodness for the photos because of the heavy rains of the last few days washed it to the ground.
Those rains of the last two days of the month brought the month to 6.56 inches and made the summer the 4th wettest since my weather records began in 1965. As a matter of fact, some of the wettest summers on my list have occurred in the last 5 years, 2018, 2020 and 2023.
But the jackpot summer wetness was 2011 thanks to TS Ireen that brought well over 4 inches to Great Barrington, more to the north, especially Vermont, as well as some severe thunderstorms.
We average 17.62 inches a summer and because more and more summers linger through September, I include the month in my summer totals.
We have accumulated 42.26 inches so far this year, a lot more than our drier, less humid summer of last year.
Now on to temperatures.
This September turned out to be the fifth warmest. Each day coupled with the high humidity made the month feel more like August. It seems we wrap up the A/C later each year. And as always it seems the low minimum readings are not as low as they used to be.
So now it’s October. Some of the early colors look wonderful. It will be interesting to see how the wet summer has influenced “THE FLAMING FALL REVUE.”
Autumn in the Berkshires is one of the reasons I love it here.
Have a wonderful and spectacular viewing month.
