from Victoria-Weather
It was one of the warmest starts to autumn that we’ve Ever experience. With Halloween around the corner, we might see a bit of a change. If nothing else, the weather might get a little spoooooooky. (Two Portlands in one week is spooky, right?)
Portland, Oregon
Road Trip from Portland to Trenton, New Jersey
Sherman, Texas
Roanoke, Virginia
Road Trip from Sherman to Roanoke
Portland, Maine
Weirton, West Virginia
Every once in a while, I find myself surprised by the map, and today is one of those times. Ogden is nearly due west of Springfield, and will take a long two days to get to. The mileage is 1,304, and we will take care of 542 of those miles at about 67.7mph on Monday, with the real work coming on Tuesday. If you consider road tripping to be work, of course.
DAY ONE (Monday)
Did someone say “road trip weather”? No? That’s not something a normal person says? Well, in that case, I will say it. It’s good road trip weather in the middle of the country, and that will continue tomorrow, with high pressure and temperatures that aren’t too hot, aren’t too cold. We’ll navigate through Missouri and into Nebraska, making it past Lincoln to Shelton for our one overnight of the trip.
DAY TWO (Tuesday)
It’s always nice when Day Two is a Tuesday, because it’s significantly less confusing. OK, maybe only for my simple brain. The rest of the drive through Nebraska is going to be serene, but a short waved trough moving through the Rockies will make things significantly more interesting. Rain in the low elevation and snow at higher spots will be seen from Cheyenne westward. We’ll start to emerge from the wet and snow from Rock Springs on westward, and sunshine will return by the time we hit Ogden. Or at least, it would if we arrived when the sun was still up.
I consider myself a geography aficionado. It’s something I am good at, but frankly, I constantly confuse Ogden and Provo. Ogden, if you were curious, is north of Salt Lake City.
At 653PM, MT, Ogden was reporting a temperature of 59 degrees with clear skies. There really weren’t many clouds anywhere across the western United States as residents try to reclaim some autumn after an early shot of snow last weekend.
A fast moving upper level low will rotate through the central Pacific Coast towards Utah, bringing about some clouds to the region, with high elevation snow becoming likely again. Precipitation will arrive on Monday morning, and down by the Lake, Ogden will see only rain. There should be some improvement after sunset, but only at the end of a rainy afternoon.
Tomorrow – Sunny, High 69, Low 41
Monday – Rain through the daylight hours. High 57, Low 42
TWC: Tomorrow – Generally sunny despite a few afternoon clouds, High 70, Low 42
Monday – Cloudy with rain developing later in the day. High 57, Low 44
AW: Tomorrow – Mostly sunny High 69, low 40
Monday – Cooler with clouds and breaks of sun; breezy in the morning with a thunderstorm in spots followed by afternoon showers High 58, Low 41
NWS: Tomorrow – Sunny, High 69, Low 40
Monday – Rain, mainly after 1pm High 56, Low 42
WB: Tomorrow – Sunny in the morning, then becoming partly cloudy, High 67, Low 41
Monday – Breezy. Partly sunny with a slight chance of rain in the morning, then cloudy with rain in the afternoon. High 56, Low 43
WN: Tomorrow – Mostly sunny, High 69, Low 42
Monday – Mostly cloudy with light rain, High 56, Low 50
FIO: Tomorrow – Partly cloudy throughout the day. High 74, Low 43
Monday – Rain until night, starting again in the afternoon, high 63, Low 49
I’m not sure what broker at Forecast.io, but they sure have different forecasts. Forecast lows are all non-standard for Monday, except Weather Nation who don’t have hourly forecasts that deep into the night. The satellite is pretty empty
I’m not sure how Californians relate to the change in seasons like we do east of the Rockies, but if they do identify with the seasons, then the air in Los Angeles last weekend was positively fall like. Temperatures were in the 70s in the afternoon, with 50s overnight. If there were deciduous trees in LA, I would think to do some leaf peeping. One thing to take a look at in Los Angeles, though, is the forecast you might get from Weatherbug. They were nearly perfect for a good weather weekend forecast. The gold standard, truly.
Actuals: Saturday, High 71, Low 56
Sunday, High 78, Low 55
Grade: A-C
For the second time in the day, we had a forecast where many outlets called for rain, and I couldn’t figure out why. In Cleveland, there was a little bit of rain, just as the forecast period started, but in Dothan, the rain was indeed long out of town. The cool air behind the rain was there too, with temperatures dipping a little bit below where V-W had forecast, which opened some daylight, and another outlet who forecast a dry period in Dothan, Forecast.io, ended up securing victory.
Actuals: Friday, High 86, Low 67
Saturday – High 85, Low 63
Grade: A-C
We are destined for a three day trek across the western US for our forecast today. This route includes forays along roads that we don’t often see, especially in Wyoming and South Dakota, so that is kind of fun. Also, the idea of an Angelino in South Dakota makes me chuckle. The mileage between the two towns is 1677 miles, and our travels along several highways with 80mph speed limits will allow for a pace of nearly 70mph overall, and 559 miles of ground covered every day. Pretty sweet for a long trip.
DAY ONE (Tuesday)
I’m not sure there is an actual location where you can take a picture of downtown Los Angeles with Mount Baldy looming in the background like this, but it’s what most pictures of downtown LA look like, so there must be something. The drive through California into the Lake Havasu area, where we will really start to turn to the north. A massive storm system is moving into the middle of the country and will bring more severe weather to the Plains, but also, significantly, will bring some snow to the Wasatch as we drive just to the east of them on I-15. We’ll stop in Holden, Utah, watching the peaks whiten overnight. Kind of like this picture of Mount Baldy.
DAY TWO (Wednesday)
The strong storm will barrel its way out of our route by the time we get moving on Wednesday, but bear in mind that this will be the first winter storm of the season, so even though we are on the interstates, the roads in the passes may still be a little slick. Nothing fresh will be falling through northern Utah or across the vast expanse of Wyoming that we will cover. We will end the day in the paper town of Savageton, which is about 2/3 of the way from Casper to Gillette.
DAY THREE (Thursday)
Moving through the Black Hills should be a bit easier than the Rockies and Wasatch were. They are lower, and probably won’t see as much snow, especially at the level I-90 passes through the region. Then, after Rapid City, South Dakota will feature boundless fields of pastureland, and a heck of a lot of sunshine and, most importantly, a speed limit of 80mph.
We’re going to the Dakotas this evening. There was a little bit of rough weather in South Dakota last night. Will the start of the work week bring more of the same?
At 756pm, CT, Sioux Falls was reporting a temperature of 55 degrees with clear skies. There was a complex series of of low pressure bringing rain and areas of strong thunderstorms from the Canadian border and further south, particularly in Oklahoma and Texas, but a swath of clear and cool air had built into the Dakotas.
The next trough will rotate into the central Plains after diving out of the Rockies, and is going to bring with it a strong batch of cold air, and quite a bit of vorticity, winding up what will likely be the largest storm of the season. Expect that by late Tuesday, flow will become robustly southerly, with rain starting late in the afternoon and evening. Very windy conditions are expected Tuesday night, with rain heavy in spots.
Tomorrow – Mostly sunny, High 71, Low 42
Tuesday – Sunny early, then rainy with very strong winds, even outside o thunderstorms, High 72, Low 41
TWC: Tomorrow – Sunshine and clouds mixed. High 72, Low 44
Tuesday – Plentiful sunshine High 71, Low 43
AW: Tomorrow – Pleasant and warmer with intervals of clouds and sunshine High 72, Low 45
Tuesday – Partly sunny and comfortable (late rain) High 70, Low 44
NWS: Tomorrow – Sunny High 71, Low 44
Tuesday – Sunny, High 70, Low 45
WB: Tomorrow – Sunny, High 71, Low 46
Tuesday – Sunny, High 70, Low 46
WN: Tomorrow – Mostly sunny, High 71, Low 44
Tuesday – Mostly sunny, High 69, Low 44
FIO: Tomorrow – Clear throughout the day. High 71, Low 45
Tuesday – Clear throughout the day. High 70, Low 45
It’s not a matter of if, but when it will rain in Sioux Falls. At least they aren’t in Wyoming and Montana, where snow is likely. And at least for tonight, it’s pretty OK.
I was brave and bold with the forecast for Cleveland. I had no rain in there, and for the predominance of residents in the area, I’m sure they thought that forecast was spot on. But no, a heavy rain storm was in the area for the first hour of the day on Thursday. They had .87″ of rain before 1AM on Thursday, and then it was mostly done for the rest of the week. That counts as a busted forecast for me, and Victoria-Weather fell out of contention. The Weather Channel would have won the day regardless. I’m not sure if that is a consolation or not.
Actuals: Friday: .87″ of rain in thunderstorms, High 81, Low 63
Saturday – High 81, Low 57
Grade: B-C
There are so many cities in the US, and we forecast for all of them, it’s always surprising for some reason when one of the big cities of the country gets pulled. Let’s forecast in LA!
At 753PM, PT, Los Angeles was reporting a temperature of 64 degrees with partly cloudy skies. Dew points were a little on the high side for the Los Angeles basin, lingering in the 60s near the coast and to the mid 50s inland. A deeply angled jet trough lies over the southwestern US, and it was evidenced by the stream of clouds from Los Angeles to Lake Havasu and south towards the Mexican border.
This jet trough will rotate away from southern California, bringing more sunny skies to the picture. This will allow for some warmth to build back in. Breezy conditions may arise on Saturday, but quieter winds are expected for Sunday.
Tomorrow – Partly cloudy, some morning fog, High 71, Low 58
Sunday – Partly cloudy, High 77, Low 57
TWC: Tomorrow – Sunny skies. High 72, Low 55
Sunday – Mainly sunny. High 81, Low 55
AW: Tomorrow – Mostly sunny and cool, High 72, Low 54
Sunday – Sunny and pleasant High 80, Low 57
NWS: Tomorrow – Sunny, High 73, Low 54
Sunday – Sunny, High 80, Low 56
WB: Tomorrow – Sunny, High 71, Low 55
Sunday – Sunny, High 78, Low 55
WN: Tomorrow – Mostly sunny, High 74, Low 54
Sunday – Sunny, High 81, Low 57
FIO: Tomorrow – Clear throughout the day. High 78, low 56
Sunday – Clear throughout the day High 61, Low 57
Next week is going to be a pretty interesting week in California, with rain and even snow in the mountains. Yowza.
A second forecast for the day, but there shouldn’t be much controversy with this one.
At 1053PM, CT, Dothan was reporting a temperature of 75 degree with overcast skies. The overcast will help sustain warmer temperatures through the night, and dew points that also sat in the mid 70s foretell of fog. The clouds are low based and low topped, and should diminish with sunshine on Friday. The remnants of a boundary running north-south through Georgia was touching off some thunderstorms in the Peach State, but the threat for rain had passed in southern Alabama.
An organizing area of low pressure off the coast of Georgia will draw the moisture presently in Georgia mostly off shore, and certainly away from Alabama. Expect a dry weekend in Dothan, but the humidity is more than likely to stay elevated.
Tomorrow – Fog early, then clearing and sunny, High 84, Low 72
Saturday – Sunny with less haze in the morning, High 85, Low 66
TWC: Tomorrow – Partly cloudy, slight chance of a rain shower, High 86, Low 70
Saturday – Mostly sunny skies. High 85, Low 64
AW: Tomorrow – A couple of morning showers and a thunderstorm; otherwise, partly sunny High 85, Low 71
Saturday – Pleasant with sunshine and a few clouds High 84, Low 65
NWS: Tomorrow – A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms before 10am. Patchy fog before 9am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming sunny, High 84, Low 70
Saturday – Sunny, High 84, Low 65
WB: Tomorrow – Mostly sunny, a chance of showers and thunderstorms in the morning, High 84, Low 70
Saturday – Sunny, High 85, Low 65
WN: Tomorrow = Partly cloudy with isolated storms, High 84, Low 71
Saturday – Mostly sunny, High 84, Low 65
FIO: Tomorrow – Humid and partly cloudy throughout the day. High 84, Low 69
Saturday – Clear throughout the day. High 84, Low 63
I rea;;y am not sure where the rain is coming from in the forecasts for Dothan. Sure looks quiet right now.
