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
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)
Los Angeles, California
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.
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.
