HikeArizona.COM

The endless chatter of weather.

It rained just enough to soak the layer of dust that has accumulated the past two plus months in Deem Hills. This was the first day in a long time I didn't have to smack my shoes and gaiters of all the dirt when I was done. Everything was creosote fresh and the views clear in every direction.

Short quick thunderstorm here in Page, started after 1 p.m., lasted less than 20 minutes.

In Payson Friday and Sunday total at our house was 3/8th of an inch... slow and steady!

Snowmageddon is here!
15" at Breck so far.

Wow! We had what I hope is our last snow a week ago. My corner of NJ is poised to go directly from daily highs the 30s and low 40s into the 70s, without much of a Spring.

@big_load
Just shoveled 12" off the deck with no let up and the driveway already has several inches on it after clearing it a couple hours ago. I'm pretty sure Chumley is on his way up because he says he likes to shovel snow so much! Ha!

Today's newspaper noted the weakening of El Niño and the likely establishment of La Niña, which increases the likelihood of a more problematic Atlantic hurricane season.

MtnBart01 wrote: I'm pretty sure Chumley is on his way up because he says he likes to shovel snow so much! Ha!

Chumley was up enjoying the foot of new snow in his own backyard! Nothing like mid-April Pow in Arizona!

"A picture is worth a thousand words"

Eh, I still prefer 115.

Eight days since the last post, which is far too long. Currently 45 degrees with howling winds; several bursts of hail, then snow this morning. Other than that, a lovely spring day at GCNP.

Yeah, this dusty wind is plateau-esque. I don't recall this in Tucson, last year, but I may just have forgotten. Could be worse, though, and the weekend was lovely. Just lovely.

Spring has been quite dry so far in NJ, and people are noting that it's been generations since there was a major fire in the Pinelands. Last night there was a forester on the news saying it could be primed for a wildfire of western size, but much greater intensity, due to the accumulation of duff and deadfall. There's already wildfire going in Pike and Monroe Counties in PA, large enough to fill the sky here with brown haze and a readily discernible smell and taste of smoke.

Is AZ heading for a big fire year?

@big_load
I think that is just a bunch of scare tactics to fear people into being careful with fire. The big blaze in Tabernacle, Woodlands and Shamong Townships was 53 years ago, and though that area hasn't burned in a lot of the area, the NJFS does a fair amount of dormant season burns to keep loading down. The areas they don't burn are the low lands with dense pitch pine, as seen off Carranza RD in Wharton, but that area needs to burn. Much of the areas that are red maple swamps, and declining bogs would benefit from a hot fire to open up habitat for pitcher plants and other rare species. There was a larger fire in 1999 in Bass River SF, and it improved some areas. it was started by a bomb, accidentally dropped by some guardsmen out of that range down there, between the minarets, down Cazbah Way. That brings me to the other ranges on Fort Dix- Mcguire and Lakehurst, which have a high fire return interval. Lots of fear mongering, but western proportions is over blowing it.

I hope it's just fearmongering. They made it sound like a fire that size would culminate in a nuclear winter, if it didn't incinerate the atmosphere first.

I wonder if this current weather pattern had occurred in January or February if it would have tapped into more moisture and provided that much-anticipated winter we had been warned about?

This seems to be very El Niño-like with one system after the other. Only it's spring now, so there's not much oomph to them.

Regardless, a little bit of moisture in April and May goes a long way to suppress fire danger, so it's all welcome in my book. Seems like the southern half of the state has been missing out on most of these though.

chumley wrote:I wonder if this current weather pattern had occurred in January or February if it would have tapped into more moisture and provided that much-anticipated winter we had been warned about?

Pretty sure that would have been the case.

@chumley
Huh?

Currently snowing at GCNP. It is not sticking, but certainly large flakes, blowing sideways at times.

Raining in Page off and on all night and all day (it's about noon right now, sun just came out) and more is in the forecast for here.