Monday, November 16, 2009

It's a Wind-fall in Skagit County!
Ooh boy-the winds are whipping up here right now in northwestern Washington. So far so good with my electricity supply. Later, I'll go for a run and assess how many trees and limbs have come toppling down. And yes, I'll make sure to run during a lull in the gusts! November is a rough month here-when we usually get deluged with rains and pounded with winds. It is also the month where we are most likely to experience ravaging floods-just what we need for our trails-and not to mention for the folks living in these flood prone areas as well. Still though, you haven't experienced strong winds until you have hiked on New Hampshire's Presidential Range during a a gusty front. I recall back in the 1980s being up on Mount Eisenhower with 70 mph gusts. You can't stand up in that kind of wind. It'll rip your parka right off. And the 70 mph is nothing to what Mount Washington can get. After all New Hampshire's highest summit holds the record for strongest wind blast on the planet-231 mph, and that was before the measuring instruments were blown off of the mountain (although that last part might be more of a legend)! What's the strongest wind gusts you have endured? And no, presidential state of the union addresses don't count (from either party!).

(Photo-Heather and Jeff stare out at Mount Washington from North Twin on a much more sedate September day)

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