Spring is not an easy season. Just about anywhere can get some wild weather. This spring is even more special. It is not often you hear about a hard freeze in late Feburary in the Napa Valley of California or New England setting snowfall records with another month of snow to go.
Our friends in eastern Canada report that winter has found them with a vengeance. And parts of North Carolina and Virginia have been suffering through drought. Just this last day of February, the Roanoke, Virginia area has finally seen some significant rainfall. We will have to wait and see if it is enough to get this from being the driest winter on record in Pulaski County, Va.
Here in Coastal North Carolina, this winter we have even seen snow stay on the ground for a few hours. December and January were brutally cold. I saw water temperatures in the White Oak River down to as low as 37.5F. Yesterday, February 27, I went out to check the temperature again. I found fog and a water temperature of 60F.
I am no stranger to fog having lived in Nova Scotia and on the side of an often foggy mountain in Virginia. Still this last day of February has definitely been weird. We started out foggy, warmed up, and then got really windy as you can see from the picture. Anyone trying to kayak out our inlet the last day of February would have needed an outboard motor to make it in the strong winds.
The warm air was in forecast, but there was a surprise. The fog covered Swansboro and other points along the coast once again. With the wind blowing straight up the gut towards us from Swansboro, it almost felt like we were being misted. The truth is that it felt just like a nice summer day in Nova Scotia. That means a light coat felt pretty good.
With the air temperature being in the mid-sixties and damp foggy air blowing off the water, it certainly brought back memories. Fog and cool air just about define Nova Scotia in the summer except there is one thing missing. We need some really green grass. If things aren't foggy in Nova Scotia in the summer, they are blue or green. The only colors are fog, blue, and green. Novia Scotia like Carteret County has about as much water as land.
As I am watching the clock tick down to March 1, the cold front with rain and thunderstorms is rolling across us. With high winds, fog, rain, and thunder, it looks like March is coming in like a lion. Fortunately for us on the coast it appears the storms have moved through quickly. They were gone in the length of time it took to mention them.
I am hoping that the end of March is an especially warm time since my tomato seedlings should be in the ground by then. They are just getting their secondary leaves, and I am already dreaming about tomato sandwiches.
On another note, I think that I have finished the 2011 revision to my Emerald Isle Travel Guide. It won't be long until it is time to be thinking about summer vacations. I hope oil prices drop a little by then.
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