From the North Shore of Little Rock Lake

MARCH 2011 WEATHER & PHENOLOGY IN REVIEW

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

March came in like a lion. And, left at least like a Bobcat. Started with no blizzard, but high winds and a temp of -10.7 degrees below zero (F) with a wind chill of -35. The first ten days saw low temperatures below zero. Then, from the 16^th thru the 20th a warm up. I had visions of a warm March and green things making their appearance. WRONG!!! Cold (two more below zero days later in the month) and snow. With the exception of the 31^st, the low temps were either below zero or in the single digits. Then, the big snow mentioned later in this article.

It turns out I was not wrong in feeling that this is/was the winter that might never end. In checking my low averages for March for the last seven years, the coldest low average was in 2008 and that average low was 11.05 degrees (F) compared to 8.77 degrees (F) this year. Continuous snow cover that started on the 23^rd of November lasted until the 1^st of April. One hundred-thirty days. We were not blessed with a lot of sun either.

There was a blessing that came with the cold weather. Snow melt was minimal. Little Rock Lake only came up a few inches. The concerns over flooding were negated, at least for the time being. Better the cold weather than high water. No tornados either.

SIGNIFICANT WEATHER EVENT: (March 23^rd 7:30 A.M.) Well, sort of anyway. I keep forgetting that it is winter in Minnesota even tho the calendar says it’s spring.

For many years there was always a storm of some sorts for either the high school hockey or basketball tournaments. Well, here it was again, right on schedule.

Even the good Professor Bob Weisman, SCSU, said we were going to get hit. He was right. This storm was not something that we needed that coincided with the water levels that is being monitored on Little Rock Lake. There were concerns about high water.

Watching TV that night, the wind was blowing so hard the cabin shook. Sleet, rain then the snow. When was this weather ever going to end? Yes, all the area schools were closed along with several roads scattered through Central MN.

It was an adventure just getting to the rain/snow gage and to measure the snow depth. 6.6" of snow that was really difficult to measure due to blowing. When I tried to get the rain/snow gage off the mount, frozen water had glued it solidly to the mount. Back to the cabin for hot water. It finally came free after the hot water treatment. What a pain in the fanny. The 6.6" of snow equated to .77" of precipitation. A very heavy snow. While I was doing that, (7:00 A.M.) the good folks from Burski Construction came down North Freedom Road. The driver gave me a big wave and a smile. Diligent at his task, the road was plowed to their usual excellence. The road clearing was good as I had to make a trip to Zuleger and Little Rock Creek to measure the water levels. Zuleger Creek was down and Little Rock Creek was up. No high water yet. With cold temperatures forecast for the rest of the week, it looked like it would be winter until the end of the March. That turned out to be true.

WEATHER LAST MARCH: Warmer and less snow. Only two days with below zero temperatures, and they were at the beginning of the month. The average low was nearly twenty degrees warmer at 23.8 degrees above zero (F). Average warm temperatures reflected the same. Lots of days in the 50's and 60's. In fact the ice went out of Little Rock Lake the 31^st. As I write this (02 April 2011) there are still folks fishing on the ice on the lake.

Remember all the RAIN we received in the middle of the month? Well, that was just when the lake was raising and a big concern for some residents of Little Rock Lake. The water crested on the 18^th when a welcome phone call from Ken Graber who lives on the Harris Channel told me that the ice was flowing OUT of Little Rock Lake.

The month ended with 1.37" of precipitation and NO SNOW and 30.1" of snow for the snow season. (This year 64.1")

WEATHER: I’ve already talked about most of it. Temperature wise, our seven days with below zero temperatures paints the picture. Eleven days brought snow/rain. The most snow fell during the big snow storm on the 23^rd when 6.6" of snow melted to .77" of precipitation. If you had a sore back after shoveling, now you know why. We ended the month with 1.71" of precipitation for a year total of 3.69" this year while snow totals were 15.6" for the month and 64.1" for the snow season. (We did get .7" of snow on April 1^st. Not an April Fools joke!)

The coldest day occurred on the 2^nd when I recorded a -12.1 degrees below zero (F) while the warm temperature of 50.9 degrees (F) was recorded on the 18^th. The average low was 8.77 degrees and the high was 37.29 degrees.

WEATHER RECORDS IN MARCH: Lest I whine too much about the cold weather this month, the record cold locally was a -32 degrees below zero (F) in 1948 while greater MN saw the temperature drop to a very cold -50 degrees below zero (F) in 1898 at Pokegama Dam. On the positive (warm) side of things, our record warm temperature was a balmy 81 degrees (F) in 1910 while a temperature of 88degrees (F) in Montevideo (the same day the 23^rd) in 1910 completes the temperature picture.

Although it seemed as if the snow would never end, it did not even come close to the record setting snowfall which was 51.7" in 1965 in our St. Cloud area.

Other records include: The most snow in one month, 66" at Collegeville in 1965. As long as we are talking about a snow season, the most snow in a season (1949 - 1950) 170" (432 cm) occurred at Grand Portage State Park. The first tornado of the season was recorded at Truman MN on the 18^th of March 1968. The first outbreak of tornados (2 or more) occurred in Southern MN on the 29^th. Still on tornados, the longest track (continuous path) 67 miles in Southern MN also on the 29^th.

I’ve officially stopped complaining (whining) about our cold weather when I reviewed all the tornado issues Minnesota has dealt with in March.

PHENOLOGY: I saw three Tundra Swans near the highway 10 bridge on the 4^th enjoying the small body of open water. On the 16^th Jan and I were happy to observe the return of a pair of flying squirrels. They have been AWOL for more than two months. They were busy eating sunflower seeds from our tower feeder. On the 18^th a lone Bald Eagle was patrolling the north shore of Little Rock Lake.

Speaking of eagles, this is a note for all you pet owners/lovers of your precious companion. I received a report (not confirmed) of someone out on Little Rock Lake ice fishing with their small dog. The next thing they knew an eagle had snatched it from the ice and was off to its perch to enjoy a meal. My research, asking my friends if they knew the person, found that this has happened on more than one occasion. So, if you have a small pet, keep in mind that it can be a dangerous place for them. Everything eats something else in the wild. Pets that roam might be a meal for one of the many critters that roam about hunting for their meal.

On the 24^th the Sharp-shinned Hawk returned. Another of the birds that have been absent for several months. Just to let us know that spring is around the corner, the first Red-winged Blackbird perched on the feeder on the 25^th followed by a group of Grackles on the 26^th. The calender says it is spring and those two species believed the calender rather than what was happening. Our usual congregation of woodpeckers and songbirds were active at the feeders all month.

RESIDENT OBSERVATIONS: Laura, my friend at the Pine Country Bank reported that she heard the first spring song of the Northern Cardinal on the 7^th at Ft. Ripley. (The town, not the Camp) On the 9^th Conrad Urbik reported that a formation of six Trumpeter Swans flew over near his home in Royalton. On the 17^th Pat and Sharon Cairns observed a pair of migrating Robins at their bird bath. Steve Bogie reported he saw the first Great Blue Heron on the 29^th and Fred Segler observed the first striped gopher near his road and active pocket gophers also on the 29^th.

NATURE NOTE: A couple of loon facts: (They will be here soon.) Loons have the least wing surface in proportion to body weight of any flying bird and their speed is surprisingly fast, up to 100 mph Jim Gilbert’s Nature Notes pp 104.