From the North Shore of Little Rock Lake

NOVEMBER 2010 WEATHER & PHENOLOGY IN REVIEW

Jim Hovda Rice, MN. 56367-0265 jhovda.rice@jetup.net

November was split in two parts. The first half of the month was almost like October. Some cool nights but the warm days and evenings were really pleasant. In fact, there were four days with temps in the 60's. I was hoping for a really nice November. On the 14^th it changed. Lows were in the 20's and highs never reached the 40's. In fact, from the 23^rd to the 28^th the low temps were in the single digits or below zero. It felt like January. It was during that cold spell that Little Rock Lake froze over on the 25^th. Yes, only two days later there was a spear house planted out on the ice. Difficult to believe.

Our winter half of November also produced our first SNOW of the snow season with 1.7" on the 14^th. We received snow on the last day but it was preceded by a lot of rain so we ended the month with1.9" on the ground.

Most of the snow and severe weather were up north. Storm tracks produced 27.9" of snow in Duluth and a total of 35.6" for the start of their snow season. I think we lucked out. With that bit of doom and gloom I’ve concluded that we are solidly in our winter season. Our only hope for better weather will be a very welcome Indian summer in January.

WEATHER NOVEMBER 1940: For those of you who were around seventy years ago, the Armistice Day blizzard is well worth noting. According to the MN State Climatology Office, this storm was the second biggest weather event in the nation. This storm killed forty-nine MN residents and one hundred-fifty nationwide. Many hunters were killed. Caught out in the open with summer clothing. Communication by radio back then was not what it is today and limited their ability to tell folks what was coming. You young folks, get grand parents who were there to tell you about this significant event. This storm, according to Harold Legatt of Rice, remembered well this event. He told me that unless you were there you would not believe what it was like. The family only had enough wood for the kitchen stove. They were unable to leave the house to gather wood.

WEATHER LAST OCTOBER: A lot warmer and much less precipitation. There were only four days when the low temp made it into the teens. The warm days blessed us with sixteen days of temps in the 50's and 60's. Even the 29^th gave us a temp of 44.2 degrees. This was the third warmest November in St. Cloud weather records. The not much rain totaled .56" at the end of the month for a total of 28.45" for the year. It was a really dry month. There was no snow.

WEATHER: My preamble was a good introduction to this part of my article. Our coldest day was a -2.6 degrees below zero while our warm temp was a comfortable 68.7 degrees on the 10^th. The average low was 21.09 and the high 41.19 degrees (F). The most precipitation event occurred on the 30^th when a combination of rain and snow produced .43" of liquid. Had that been all snow, we would have needed the snow removal equipment for sure. This late storm started with rain. Then the temps dropped. This produced glare ice on the roads. Benton County was asleep at the switch again. No chemicals or snow removal made driving extremely dangerous. One had to be careful just getting out the door and out of a car. Most major roads were OK. We ended the month with a total of 1.29" of precip and 5.20" of snow. Total precip for the year stands at 34.11". The trees got a good drink for their winter rest.

WEATHER RECORDS: Starting with the MN stuff our coldest day was a -23 degrees below zero (F) in 1905 while the out state reading was a chilly -45 degrees below zero (F) at Pokegama Dam in 1896. The most precipitation locally was 4.16" in 1922. The most snow in a November occurred in 1983 when 25" was recorded. The latest tornado recorded in MN was one that touched down in Maple Plain on November 16^th 1931.

PHENOLOGY: As late as the 11^th, pocket gopher mounds were still being produced. On the 14^th it became apparent that the heater for the bird bath needed to be installed. The large chunk of suet (from the locker in Foley) was in place on a shelf by the trees. The next day (16^th) a pair of Pileated Woodpeckers were busy hacking away gulping down large chunks. The rest of the woodpeckers were there too. Downy, Hairy, and the Red-bellied were taking their turn. On the 17^th a large “V” formation of either Snow Geese or Swans were heading south over Little Rock Lake. Mentioned before, the ice went out of LRL on the24th. Last year it was not until Dec 5^th when the ice went out of LRL.

A NATURE NOTE: As I noted before, placing four pennies in the bird bath in the summer really kept the algae at bay. Now that I have the heater in the bird bath I put the pennies in not knowing if they would still work with the heater. They sure did. Algae has been really reduced. Cleaning the bird bath in the winter is not my favorite task. Get the suet and feeders out for our feathered friends.