It’s firewood cutting and deer processing time in my neck of the woods, and so winter weather forecasts and the 2016 weather outlook are on my mind. So far this winter it’s been unusually mild – we’ve only had 10 or so fires in the woodstove. I’m not complaining, though, as that has saved my wife and I some firewood, and I know it’s saved others in my part of Kansas on November heating bills. I love this time of the year, and recently when a copy of The Old Farmer’s Almanac of 2016 came across my desk, I had to look ahead at next year’s weather predictions, and also reflect on the accuracy of last year’s predictions.
First of all, with regard to last year’s predictions, it was supposed to be cold and dry in our part of the country last winter, and that’s pretty much just what we got – we didn’t get hardly any snow at all last year. Summer’s prediction wasn’t quite as accurate: Instead of hot and dry, we had a pretty mild, very wet summer. How did they do in your part of the country?
Anyways, on to the 2016 Old Farmer’s Almanac winter and summer weather predictions.
For winter 2015-16, the publication calls for cold temperatures in most parts of the nation, with the northeast coast and Pacific Northwest getting more snow than usual. They predict colder temperatures than usual for most of the Atlantic coastal seaboard and extending west through the Corn Belt, Great Lakes region, and further west to the eastern part of Montana. The wet places on the map you notice are throughout the Rocky Mountains down into northwest Texas and northeast New Mexico, on the east coast from southern New Jersey down into Georgia, and Maine. Expect more snowfall than usual in the Pacific Northwest, from the Dakotas east to Michigan, in the Ohio Valley and all states surrounding Kentucky, and in the northeast. Normal temps and dry is the prediction here in Kansas.
For summer, when I look at the map I notice two things: (1) For most of the nation, The Old Farmer’s Almanac predicts hotter than normal temperatures, nearly all of the northern half of the U.S., and (2) there’s a pretty sizable red area indicating hot and dry conditions. Hot and dry is the prediction for most of California too, down into Arizona – here’s hoping that’s wrong. The southeast U.S. and on up to the northeast, as well as the northwestern states, might get a little wetter than usual.
Aside from the weather predictions, this little book is chock-full of the usual when-to-plant, when-to-fish, best days for doing all sorts of activities, as well as feature articles on growing a home-brew garden, fruit-tree grafting, how seeds travel, all about legumes (with recipes), how jet streams work, and more. “Angling Advice for Anyone Anywhere” was just one headline that caught my eye.
Time will of course tell if the 2016 weather predictions offered by The Old Farmer’s Almanac are indeed accurate, but here’s to a safe, fruitful season no matter where you are. After last winter, my wife is hoping to get snowed in this year. If it happens, hopefully we’ll be ready for it – I know we’ll have venison in the freezer and enough wood to get us through. As always, drop me a line at cregan@grit.com to compare hunting notes, woodcutting experiences, gardening tips, or whatever else might be on your mind.
To check out more from The Old Farmer’s Almanac, or to get a copy, visit www.Almanac.com.
