Lake Havasu City, Arizona to Rockford, Illinois

Ryan Henning Leave a comment

It’s getting warmer which means it is getting closer to road trip season. This three day trek might follow the 1,797 mile path of someone returning from spring break. We will average 66.5 miles an hour and 532 miles a day, though we are really going to pack it in — 11 hours — on Saturday.

DAY ONE (Thursday)

Lake Havasu City, Arizona

This drive is one of beauty if you are just there to enjoy the scenery, as the sun will be shining, but as this is a weather blog, it may not offer the excitement we are hoping for. Alas, it is the Desert Southwest, and you get what you pay for. It will be a bit more interesting if you take in the entirety of the region, however. Low pressure in the Gulf of Alaska and a festering system in south Texas will squeeze our route, even bringing some clouds towards Albuquerque as we conclude our first day, though I-40 will stay clear.

DAY TWO (Friday)
That sluggish feature in south Texas is going to start wandering east, and remain out of our path, but we would be wise to note what is causing this wander. A strong area of low pressure emerging in the lee of the Rockies will start directing traffic across the Plains, and will bear watching all weekend. Our trip to Oklahoma City will be pretty uneventful, however, which is a nice thing to say when severe weather looms.

DAY THREE (Saturday)
It’s not going to organize terribly quickly, our large, troublesome area of low pressure. This means we don’t need to worry about a severe outbreak during our drive, but we will some isolated showers east of Rolla, MO, and more scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms north of Springfield as we get closer to the center of the system. Rockford will probably have rain, if not when we arrive, then soon.

Rockford, Illinois

Perfect highs

Ryan Henning Leave a comment

Not one but two outlets perfectly nailed the high temperatures on both days of our Lake Havasu City forecast. Clime and The Weather Channel were the two forecasting groups that showed that incredible accuracy, but it was the low temperature forecast that settled this forecast. Clime was better than The Weather Channel, and earned the win.
Actuals: September 14th, High 100, low 72
September 15th, High 102, Low 81

Grade A-C

Lake Havasu City, Arizona

Ryan Henning 1 Comment

Lake Havasu City is probably one of the longest names for a a forecast site that we have. On the other hand, it’s position between Las Vegas and Yuma typically means a particularly brief forecast.

At 815AM, PT, Lake Havasu City was reporting a temperature of 84 degrees with fair skies. Dew points in the area were in the low 50s, though that isn’t terribly absurd for this time of the year, with the monsoon active. Most of the wet weather is at elevation, and will continue to be so in the eastern part of Arizona.
An upper level trough is on its way into the northern Rockies, which will reorient the regional flow. Cooler, denser air will be angled off the Pacific towards Lake Havasu City, and will have a difficult time reaching the area. Dew points are expected to drop, and the threat for clouds or spotty rain showers will disappear with the feature’s arrival.
Tomorrow – Mostly sunny, High 98, Low 76
Friday – Sunny, High 100, Low 80

TWC: Tomorrow – Sunny skies. High 100, Low 79
Friday – A mainly sunny sky. High 102, Low 78

AW: Tomorrow – Plenty of sun High 99, Low 79
Friday – Plenty of sun High 102, Low 77

NWS: Tomorrow – Sunny High 96, Low 80
Friday – Sunny, High 97, Low 79

WB: Tomorrow – Sunny, High 99, Low 77
Friday – Sunny, High 100, Low 78

WN: Tomorrow – Sunny, High 101, Low 79
Friday – Sunny, High 103, Low 78

CLI: Tomorrow – Sunny, High 100, Low 79
Friday – Sunny, High 102, Low 79

A little variety to the forecast in Lake Havasu City. I’m a little surprised that this is how it shook out. Satellite is clear in California, and getting clearer in Arizona.