First flakes

  There’s something amazing about the first snowflakes of autumn. Thursday started out with steady rain, which changed to a mixture of rain and snow. Only a trace of snow was recorded at MSP airport, but most people were talking about the flakes, not the rain. Lost in the snow buzz was the fact that the rain tally at MSP airport was .75”, a new record rainfall total for October 25th in the Twin Cities.

  We’ve been in a drought, so it was great to see a generous dose of rain. Despite the soaking, our October rainfall total is still three-quarters of an inch below normal in the Twin Cities. We’re also about three and one-half inches below normal since September 1st. It would be nice to see more rain before winter sets in…. 

  I’m on Twitter: @RonTrenda and LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/rontrenda

      

 

Finally, some raindrops

  I heard someone call today (Friday) a “wet day”. We did have off and on showers this morning into early afternoon, but the total rain tally was only .21” at MSP airport. Wow, our standards of wet have really changed during this dry stretch! That’s to be expected, since we just saw the second-driest September in Twin Cities history. You can impress your friends with this fact: until today’s showers, our most recent day with two-tenths of an inch (or more) of rain at MSP airport was way back on August 15th.  

  Looking ahead, I see several rain opportunities during the coming week. It’s unlikely that this will go down as one of the top 10 driest Octobers in history. That’s a good thing…

  I’m on Twitter: @RonTrenda and LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/rontrenda

Drought expands

  The past week was bone dry over most of Minnesota. As a result, the U.S. Drought Monitor (http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/) shows that drought conditions have worsened in parts of our state. Here is the current map:

  The map and chart show that 99.95% of Minnesota is experiencing drought conditions, compared to 96.32% of Minnesota one week ago. Currently, 47.38% of Minnesota is experiencing severe to extreme drought, compared to 44.89% of Minnesota one week ago. The Minnesota State Climatology Office has detailed discussions (updated weekly) of Minnesota drought conditions at (http://climate.umn.edu/doc/journal/drought_2012.htm).  

  I’m on Twitter: @RonTrenda and LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/rontrenda

  

Minnesota drought update

  New info from the U.S. Drought Monitor (http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/) shows that drought conditions have worsened over Minnesota during the past two weeks. Here is the current map:

  The map and chart show that 96.32% of Minnesota is experiencing drought conditions, compared to 64.11% of Minnesota two weeks ago. Currently, 44.89% of Minnesota is experiencing severe to extreme drought, compared to 28.17% of Minnesota two weeks ago. Only 3.68% of Minnesota is not considered to be in drought. Conditions there are classified as abnormally dry, and parts of the south metro fall into that category. The Minnesota State Climatology Office has a detailed discussion of Minnesota drought conditions at (http://climate.umn.edu/doc/journal/drought_2012.htm).

   Farmers still hope to see some rain, to recharge our soil moisture. A substantial rainfall or two would also help our lawns, lakes, rivers and creeks. Watching and hoping…

  I’m on Twitter: @RonTrenda and LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/rontrenda

  

North Shore beauty

  It happens every autumn. The first rush of dry, cool air stirs up thoughts of fall colors and a trip to the North Shore. My girlfriend Deb and I were there this past weekend, enjoying perfect weather and the full spectrum of fall colors.  

  On our hike up to White Sky Rock, north of Lutsen, we saw this bright display:

  A few miles southwest of White Sky Rock, the popular Oberg Mountain hiking trail provided many beautiful sights:

 

                     (You can left-click on any of these photos for a larger view)

  It's just a short drive up Highway 61 from Lutsen to the beautiful town of Grand Marais. The photo below shows the entrance to Grand Marais harbor. The Sawtooth Mountains, including Oberg Mountain, can be seen in the distance:

   It was a fun trip…we’ll be back!

   I’m on Twitter: @RonTrenda and LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/rontrenda