City of Port Orchard side roads.

Not much improvement on the road yet. Neighbors dad came to pik up kid in a giant suv, parkd at top of road and walked down to the house and said roads still scary. Mouse still inside and getting bolder.

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day11 5:30pm

Pine Tree Casualty

The leaning pine tree, which forked about 10 feet up, lost one of it's forks today. It dropped across the front of the house, just missing the edge of the roof. It landed where I used to park the car, I'm glad I started pulling forward a few months ago. Also, much to my chagrin, the power line I had been protecting on an hourly basis with those whackings didn't survive the fall but it turns out it wasn't the power line after all. It was the phone line. I was initially relieved, but after some thought, had I known that I would have been even more vigilant. After all, I have that shiny new kerosene heater and it has a flat top surface I could have warmed a pan of soup over. And enough safe candles to light the neighborhood. But being stuck here since the snow began to fall, and with the forecast calling for freezing tonight and more snow tomorrow and the next few days, I wouldn't have made it without my internet connection!

A huge kudos to the Qwest crew that came out to hook me back up. They left the truck at the top of the road and chose to walk down my road to survey the damage, concerned they wouldn't be able get the truck down. Their initial plan was to cut up the tree with a chainsaw, after seeing the line running under the fallen pine. But a little further investigation found the wire snapped just on the other side, so he simply pulled it through and decided to run another line further from the tree line. They completed their work in just about an hour, GREAT!

Oh, and last night in the update to the final blogpost I said it had finally stopped snowing, well that only lasted about 15 minutes. And I know because another, smaller piece of the pine tree fell and it was snowing again when I went out to check the damage.

First Fir Casualty

First Pine Casualty

Second Pine Casualty

Comic Relief

In Action

Beautiful Chaos (click to enlarge any of these, but especially this one)

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day10 6:00pm

28 Straight Hours of Snow in South Kitsap

Update: 32 solid hours of snow. It finally stopped a little before 10:00pm. I hoped, but I was too tired to even get up and check. I headed over to KIRO to check their radar... the blue cloud indicating snow had finally passed from over my town... dare I believe? Still, so . tired . ...
Then, the power flickered! NO! Wouldn't you know, the moment you slack off on the branch whacking... So I booted and scarfed up and opened the door. Drip...Drip... but no snow! Oh, and did I mention, I lost another branch. This time the Pine gave it up. And again, this was also above the power lines and I have no idea how those two giant (15+ft) branches could have missed them but I am grateful. 34 degrees now per the window, 30 MSN, at 10:34pm. As I was whacking branches I noticed the wind had picked up. Just before the sun went down I heard another large branch go down next door, where they had gone to all that trouble to cut down the trees holding up the hillside. Ooops. Heavy melting heaps of snow at the ends of branches, freezing temperatures and an increasing wind... oh boy.

The temperature held between 33 and 35 degrees today, the cycle of small then large flakes mentioned in the previous post also held for the day. I spent the day bashing those overhanging limbs. Miraculously, I haven't had a bad signal issue from the satellite dish until about an hour ago. I resigned myself to the fact that I would have to grab the broom and step ladder and head out to clear it off, but I couldn't bring myself to do it right away so I hunkered down to watch the latest new episode of Survivor Man. (So sad to hear it would be his last episode!) By the time that was over, my signal had cleared! YEAH!


The weather is on right now, and while the temperatures are set to remain near or above freezing, it's still snowing and is scheduled to continue to do so. I'm beginning to worry about the roof.

Here are the day's images:



4:00pm


That's Better!


Ahhhh....



Branch - No Whack



Branch: Whacked!

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day10 12:00pm

It was 33 degrees and the tiny flakes were still falling this morning at 7:30am. A little had accumulated since I'd stopped watching just after midnight. I checked the threatening branches right away, and they hadn't drooped too much since the last whacking. As the morning has progressed however the flakes have gotten progressively larger and are now just less than dime size and falling fairly heavily. I haven't seen a wisp of wind in days.

The temperature began to rise last night, and I noticed (heard) melt water trickling off of the roof. Even during the last outing at midnight last night I could tell that the nature of the snow was changing. It was getting heavier. This morning the predicted 'crust' had formed more solidly and the drips from the roof are becoming steadier.

I just stepped out to take a few photos and vids, was back in getting ready to post them here when I heard the sound I was dreading! Pop! Crraaack!! Smash! One of the branches snapped and landed in the drive. It was over a power line, but didn't snap that! It also landed on OUR side of the property, (no neighbor damage) and behind the cars (no personal damage). Poor tree.

So now I have to go whack branches again. The blog post time will be a little wonky for this post.

Ok, 12:54pm and the tiny flakes are back. I searched and searched the trunk of the big fir that dropped the branch, but I can't see where it came from. Here are the final photos from last night, some fresh ones from this morning too.

11:38pm

11:30am

December Casualty

The above photo would lead you to think it simply limped to the ground, still attached to the tree trunk. But appearances can be deceiving.

As of this moment, 1:44pm the window thermometer tells me it is 33 degrees (back down to this mornings temp from a high about an hour ago of 34!) MSN tells me it's 28. The flakes are still falling steadily, but are a touch smaller now. Not as small as last night however. This is the fourth switch between small and larger flakes this morning.

December Chaos

December Nemesis

December Nectar

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day9 10:00pm

Tiny Snow Flakes Now Mixed with Tiny Ice Rain

12:00pm update:

because I'm too tired to create a whole new post. just back in from whacking branches. the tiny ice spheres are still falling, but the larger flakes have returned. I took the dog out this time, the snow is nearly to the top of my rubber boots and the dog is plowing through with her chest. I haven't seen snow like this since the last time I went up to the pass to sled. That's not what it reminded me of though, I remembered the knee and thigh deep snow when I was a kid on the east coast. It's absolutely silent outside, my world is one giant sound baffle.

I've been going out each hour to knock snow off branches that overhang the power line to the house, this time the teeny flakes have returned, and are mixed with teeny frozen spheres. The effect is like diamonds and glitter falling from heaven. It's beautiful, but if it keeps up I'm afraid I won't be able to keep up with weight on the branches. The window thermometer says 28 degrees, MSN sidebar finds 23 right now, 10:37pm.

Here is how the snowfall stacks up since 2pm when it began to fall.

2pm

6pm

8pm

9pm

10pm

The radar looks as if things might begin to let up soon, let's hope so eh?

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day9 3:15pm

Round 3 - Snow falling again in South Kitsap.



1:55pm and teensy snow flakes are falling steadily. The morning began with friends and family calling to offer rides to the store or to stay over during the next stage of the December storm. There are currently 2 blizzard warnings in effect in Washington, surely a first in my time in the state. I opted for the ride into town to pick up milk and cream. They are predicting snowfall in my area to be between 3 and 24 inches! If more than about 5 inches falls on the already frozen brittle branches, I fear the power will go out leaving me without heat. I decided it was about time I remedied that, so tried to stop by the local farm/hardware store (I like to shop local when I can). Their tiny parking lot was complete chaos, lines coming and going, cars competing for spots to park that didn't exist. We drove in and out, deciding to skip that particular chaos for one that had at least more parking. A quick call ahead to verify they had a kerosene heater was a good decision, they put the last one on hold for me until I could get there. The local Ace hardware was very busy also, but so much more orderly. The employees were happy and plentiful and helpful! Heater, funnel, kerosene, batteries and still I was out the door in less than 20 minutes. Fabulous!

It's 3:15pm now, the tiny flakes have gotten a little bigger and are still falling steadily. I can no longer fully trust the MSN sidebar temperature, as it gave me a huge scare last night when it reported that it was 12 degrees! My window thermometer read 23, and a friend called and verified a similar temp. The window thermometer had been pretty consistently within 3 or 4 degrees of the MSN sidebar reading. The window reading is now 26, the MSN reading is 21.

Looks like I missed the boat with the friend that offered to have me weather the storm over there. They stocked up on yummy chicken Gorgonzola salad, home made pizza with ice cream for desert along with several varieties of heart 'warming' beverage choices for the adults. A slew of movies to watch and stack of celebrity gossip mags. BOOO!!!!



This is what the winter storm warning says:

Seattle/Bremerton Area
Winter Storm Warning:
Issued at: 12:07 PM PST 12/20/08, expires at: 5:00 PM PST 12/20/08
Winter storm warning remains in effect from 4 pm this afternoon to 10 am pst Sunday, A winter storm warning remains in effect from 4 pm this afternoon to 10 am pst Sunday. A major winter storm is on tap for later today into Sunday. Heavy snow is expected to develop along the coast and then spread into the interior of western Washington early this evening. Heaviest snow will occur on the kitsap peninsula, along hood canal, and from olympia and chehalis west to the central coast near ocean shores. 10 to 18 inches of snow is expected close to the hood canal. Other locations within this area should get 5 to 12 inches of snow.


The heaviest snowfall is expected between 7 pm tonight and 4 am Sunday morning. Late tonight into Sunday morning, freezing rain is possible in grays harbor county and the lower chehalis valley. If more precipitation occurs in the form of freezing rain than snow, then an ice storm would be possible with ice accumulations in excess of one quarter of an inch. This is not a certainty but should be kept in mind. Ice storms are capable of causing power lines and large tree branches to snap and cause major travel disruptions. Precautionary/preparedness actions, A winter storm warning means significant amounts of snow, sleet, and ice are expected or occurring. Strong winds are also possible. This will make travel very hazardous or impossible.

I expect this to be updated soon, as it is snowing now, and has been since around 2pm.

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day8 2:15pm

Frozen Sunshine

The skies cleared and the sun had a play day today. At about 9:30am the temperature was 28 degrees and the air was literally crystal clear. It sought out and found every single crystal of ice to play off of. I tried to capture some inside the camera. (click on them to view the full size image)

It's 25 degrees now, 2:34pm. The skies are gray but still bright and the wind has picked up to slight from nil.

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day7 11:15am

Still snowing steady here in south Kitsap county at 11:15am. We're at about 5 inches here now, just up the hill from the sound. I ventured out to sweep off the car, and knock snow off branches that are overhanging the power lines. Still sweet powdery snow, not what we're used to here at all. Below are some photos and video I shot, it was tough going keeping the camera relatively dry, and in fact it is now sitting out near a heat vent to dry.

It's 12:27pm and the temperature has dropped to 25 degrees from 29 at 11:30am and 33 at 9:30am. The forecast is for highs in the upper 20's for the rest of the week, so it looks like I will be stuck here for a while. The snow has piled up to about 7 inches at this point. I brushed about 5 inches off of the car windows and trunk at 11:00am, hoping to make it easier to remove than leaving it through the freeze. But about 15 minutes later it was covered again.

The snow eased up at about 12:15pm, and has now stopped at 12:39pm to allow the sun to peek through. But only 2 minutes later the brightness is fading.

These videos are taking MUCH longer to upload that I thought they would, so that will be the last of them for now. I'll still to still shots for keep up with the changing conditions since this blog post began at just after 11:00am.

12:52pm and the last video is finished. The snow has stopped and the brightness has returned to the sky, meaning it's going to get really cold really fast. The TV is showing road after road blocked by accidents or closed by transportation workers. Highway 16 is a skating rink, and the Seattle Metro buses are having more problems than successes.

KIRO is forecasting snow late Saturday, continuing Sunday accompanied by strong winds from the east.

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day3 6:21pm

Not much to report throughout the day, so I didn't. 12:56pm and the winds were picking up, slight to gusty. The snow was still frozen though, making it look like more like Montana or Oklahoma than western Washington. The window thermometer said 31 degrees
while MSN sidebar said 28.

2:11pm and the wind was pretty steady with abrupt gusts that are knocking frozen lumps of snow off branches and roof edges, flinging them diagonally like fastballs on opening night! Hope you stayed indoors for this bit folks, fast moving chunks of frozen snow are not good for the head! It was still 28/31 degrees here in Kitsap county.

As of now, both the KIRO and KOMO radar views show it should be snowing here and all around me. I double checked, not a flake to be seen.

The window thermometer gave it's final visible reading a few minutes ago of 31 degrees, while the MSN sidebar finds 28 degrees now at 6:48pm. I'll tell you it feels simply frigid outside, and the wind has stopped blustering.

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day3 11:00am

Snow continued to fall sporadically overnight after my last post.

My eyes popped open a few times to check the snow on the branches outside the window, and while I saw that more snow had fallen, it wasn't enough to warrant waking. The tuna tin rain gauge has been transformed into a tuna tin snow gauge, none the worse for wear. But isn't it interesting that no snow accumulated INSIDE the tin...

It was exactly 31 degrees per the part time window thermometer at 8:00am this morning. The local weather stations were reporting anywhere from 28-32 degrees, depending on the channel. MSN sidebar is telling me that it's 28 degrees now, at 11:00am. From the way the snow is reacting to the slight gusts of wind that began around 9:30am, I'll buy the 28 degrees. Rather than falling in mushy clumps, it is dusting off to create a short lived glittery blizzard wonderland. I find myself looking for a long while, trying to convince myself it is snowing again just like when I was a kid sitting home on a snow day. In those days I lived on the east coast, where such daydreams were common place for kids in winter. Not so much here in the pacific northwest. Snow falls overnight, and slushes to the ground by mid-morning. Only a few times in a couple decades have the conditions been right for dry glittery snow here in South Kitsap.

The time stamp of 10:30 on the car hood has nearly been filled in, and it was a nearly an inch at that point. It's very cold and blustery out, so I'm not going to re-stamp it just yet.

To my surprise I can hear a frog croaking outside the house! 4 or 5 neighborhood kids passed by about 20 minutes ago, plastic sleds in tow. I'm not sure if they were heading out, or heading in, but it sounded like they were having fun. I hope they don't try to sled down the hill at the end of the drive, it's a blind hill for the cars and very narrow with no should at all... a recipe for disaster.

The view out the front is wonderful, if this much fell here in this tree and hill protected area, I imagine it's even whiter around the county.

Here's a full shot of the table the tuna tin 'precipitation' gauge is set on. The large pot contains an African pansy, which appears quite delicate but has actually turned out to be almost weedlike in it's proliferation as well as being slug-proof and freeze proof. It sets small violet flowers heavily in early spring and then sporadically through fall. Larger clumps will survive intact through winter, and smaller plants will die back to the ground only to emerge again in spring. But I digress... next to the pot is a garden fairy sculpture holding a mirrored gazing ball. I guess I should bring that inside.

I couldn't leave out the Wooby! She is curious and excited about the snow, but hates to get her feet wet... what a dilemma! She finally got over it however...

As of 11:30am there are no signs of melting, the snow is clinging to the tree branches and occasionally being blown around by slight gusts of wind.

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day2 10:38pm

Real Snow Accumulation in South Kitsap!



There is no wind to speak of at 10:38pm, but the snow it is a fallin'! At just 10:25pm it had just dusted the fir branches outside my window. This little pocket of the county doesn't usually get snow unless the rest is pretty well covered, so I presume the rest of the county may have a solid 1/2 inch by now or more. The pacific satellite image shows clouds from the north out of Alaska and the south out of Hawaii converging and swerving just off the Wa/Or coast, and then dropping down into southern CA and heading east. Feeling sorry for my cuzins on 'da Ilan and hopeful for those folk in the south hankerin' for water.







Here is a short video out the kitchen window, you can see that darn digital thermometer on the window. Absolutely useless at night.

By 10:45pm, there was a solid inch of snow up the road from the Kitsap Court house, here are a couple of pictures. Still no wind to speak of.

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day2 9:38pm

Every picture tells a story:

And, as of 9:38pm, it's still snowing here in South Kitsap and we have a trace accumulation here where I am, fairly protected by embankments and trees. MSN says it's still 30 degrees, and is predicting rain for tomorrow.

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day2 7:00pm

The snow has stopped falling here on the hill in South Kitsap. MSN sidebar still reports the temperature as 30 degrees. KIRO's radar shows Kitsap county from Tracyton south to Sunnslope, east to Manette and west nearly to Belfair holding on to a bubble of no precipitation at all, frozen or not. While all around glares blue with snow from Sunset Beach north to the straights, east to Harper and west to at least Camp Union. This station's forecast calls for overnight lows of 31 degrees.

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day2 5:00pm

Sadly, the snow stopped falling at about 4:20pm. My friend across town lives in a zone that simply never gets snow, though she can drive 200 yards down the road and actually see the snow line crossing the road. They live in a very odd, you have to see it to believe it, micro-climate out there near Colvos passage. She is always showing up in town on rainy or chilly days in sandals and a Tshirt, proclaiming "It's sunny and warm at my house!".





The latest radar image shows the snowline holding, at what looks to be about 1/2 mile away. As of this moment, 5:22pm, it is snowing lightly with no apparent wind. Amazingly, the MSN Sidebar reports the temperature has dropped a whopping 6 degrees since the last blog post. Noting that the sun went down during that time.

It's 30 degrees and snowing at the moment in South Kitsap County.

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day2 3:30pm

I woke during the night, hoping to catch snow falling outside the window. No luck. As of 9:30pm last night, the winds and rains were light. Catching the news this morning, I should have had a full tuna tin of rain. Apparently 3+ inches fell somewhere in Kitsap county, but it didn't fall here. It is possible that the configuration of banks and trees around the yard are blocking the rainfall into my tuna tin rain gauge.



As of 3:47pm, the window thermometer is reporting 41 degrees and the MSN sidebar says it's 37 degrees. The news this morning predicted that the morning temperatures would be the warmest all day, as they would decline throughout the day in a reversal of the norms. That doesn't seem to have happened however, as 37 was the temperature this morning at 8:00am.




The above radar image shows the snow is all around me, and about to start falling any minute.

AND IT'S RIGHT!!! IT'S JUST STARTED SNOWING IN KITSAP COUNTY!
I'm near the court house, just up the hill from the sound!

Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 5:00pm

KOMO TV is reporting an unusually high tide (+1.5ft) today is combining with equally unusual high winds to make traversing the local floating bridge a tricking and sometimes scary task.

As I was leaving my house at 11:55am for those errands, the window thermometer read 40 degrees, and the rain had increased to a steady downpour. I also placed an empty tuna tin in a relatively clear space on the patio table to track the rainfall.

As I made my way through Bremerton, a stop at the bank at 12:23pm, the wind was more sustained and the rain was now mixed with freezing rain.

Back in Kitsap county around 3pm, the wind had picked up considerably and I almost lost my hat! Keys still in hand, I nearly knocked myself out trying to clamp the hat back on my head. (remind me to take some keys off that ring!) The store (Fred Meyers) was busier than usual, even for a Friday. Making my way back to the house on Highway 16, the tops of the trees were now bending seriously with the wind coming in from what seemed the east, and holding the small compact Honda on the road was a little difficult a few times. I noticed a fair sized fir branch had fallen, but no other damage and the power was still on! YEAH!

While I was putting the groceries away, my father called from Tacoma to make sure I was prepared. The wind is not bad in Tacoma, according to him. He was surprised to hear it was blowing on my side (the Narrows bridge separates the Tacoma from the Kitsap area), and we were both surprised that the power flickered while we were talking. 3 or 4 flickers, then steady electricity. Whew!

At 4:30pm, a friend from Chicago called. When I told him about the coming storm, he exclaimed "That's why my trip to Seattle was cancelled!" He flys a lot for work, and had been scheduled to come in Saturday morning. I let him know to stay by the phone, because I had heard from a guy at the store that the snow had been pushed back to Saturday from tonight. While we were talking, the power flickered again, for a longer moment this time. I thought I was a goner! It came back on however.

At 5pm, a friend on the other side of town called, sounding a little frantic. "Are you OK?" Yes, I said. I'm fine, what's wrong? She explained that the entire town of Port Orchard seemed out of power. She had just come back from cutting a Christmas tree, and had planned on hitting the grocery on the way home. Her first choice was out of power, and then the street and traffic lights went out. She headed across town, hoping to leave the 'no power zone' behind, but never did find a single store open, so was sure I too was out of power. (and without a generator and knows I refuse to burn wood). It seemed to me the wind had died down a lot, and thought I should be OK. She of course offered to let me come and stay over should that change. I'll be making that a last resort thought, she has 2 bed ridden sickies over there! Checking the tuna can rain gauge, and only about an 1/8 inch seems to have fallen, it sure does seem like a lot more. I guess it must be the wind making it seem just that much more miserable.

It's 5:30pm now, and Steve Poole has just reassured us all that the storm is still coming. The mid-day snow has changed to midnight rain-snow mix, and in fact the snow is appearing now on radar at the northwestern edge of the Olympic mountains. Freezing rain is appearing on this side of the mountain shadow, and a solid band of rain covers the rest of western Washington from border to border, shore to Cascade mountains. Steve predicts the snow should hit me around 6am.

Breaking news while I'm watching:

Wind temps around the area:

Destruction Island: 86mph

Forks: 69mph

Hoquiam: 58mph

Alki Beach: 52mph

Seattle 45mph

Tacoma 45mph (Dad?)

Friday Harbor 47mph