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Author Topic: The Winter that Wasn’t ? 2009-2010  (Read 787 times)
HOOP
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« on: March 12, 2010, 01:20:46 PM »

Overall in Canada, we had the warmest winter on record since nation-wide records began in 1948.   Canada also had the driest winter on record.

The link to the Canadian National Summary is here: 
http://www.msc-smc.ec.gc.ca/ccrm/bulletin/national_e.cfm
Here is a copy-paste of the page:

National Temperature:
The national average temperature for the winter 2009/2010 was 4.0°C above normal, based on preliminary data, which makes this the warmest winter on record since nationwide records began in 1948. The previous record was 2005/2006 which was 3.9°C above normal. At 3.2°C below normal, the winter of 1971/1972 remains the coolest. As the mean temperature departures map shows all of the country, but for a small area over the southern Prairies, was above normal, with some areas of the arctic and northern Quebec more than 6°C above normal. Southern Saskatchewan did have a cooler than normal winter, with temperatures more than 1°C below normal.



This past spring was the first season in the past 5 years with temperatures below normal, as shown in the consecutive seasons graph.

 

The temperature trend graph shows that winter temperatures have remained at or above normal since 1997. The red dashed line indicates winter temperatures have warmed over the last 63 years by 2.5°C. The winter season shows the greatest warming of any season, but all seasons have shown a warming trend since 1948.
The national temperature departures table shows the full list of winter values in the order from warmest to coolest, and shows that of the ten warmest years, 4 have occurred within the last decade, and 11 of the last 20 winters are listed among the 20 warmest.

National Precipitation:
Overall, Canada also experienced its driest winter, out of the 63-years of record, during the 2009/2010 winter, 22.0% below normal. The previous driest winter was 1977/1978, 20.1% below normal. The precipitation percent departure map shows the drier than normal conditions were widespread, with most areas of the country having at least 20% less precipitation than normal. Some areas, including parts of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario had 60% less precipitation then normal. Only three areas had more precipitation than normal: central Nunavut, northern Quebec, and western Labrador.

 

It should be noted that "normal" precipitation in northern Canada is generally much less than it is in southern Canada, and hence a percent departure in the north represents much less difference in actual precipitation than the same percentage in the south. The national precipitation rankings are therefore often skewed by the northern departures and do not represent rankings for the volume of water falling on the country.
The precipitation percent departures graph shows that most winters have been at or below normal since 1977/1978. The graph also shows the wettest winter was 1964/1965, 19.4% above normal. The national precipitation departures table presents the full list of winter precipitation values in order from wettest to driest.  The consecutive seasons graph shows that when comparing the seasonal values over that last five years, precipitation values have tended to be wetter than normal.



The link to the Canadian Regional Summary is here:
http://www.msc-smc.ec.gc.ca/ccrm/bulletin/regional_e.cfm


Regional Temperature

 
There were seven climate regions that ranked among the ten warmest winters for 2009/2010, with three setting a new high mark: Arctic Tundra (warmest on record, 5.4°C above normal); Arctic Mountains and Fiords (warmest on record, 5.3°C above normal); Northwestern Forest (warmest on record, 4.2°C above normal); Atlantic Canada (3rd warmest, 2.5°C above normal); Mackenzie District (5th warmest, 4.7°C above normal); Great Lakes/St. Lawrence (9th warmest, 2.1°C above normal); and North B.C. Mountains/Yukon (10th warmest, 5.0°C above normal). None of the climate regions ranked among the ten coolest winters. The region which ranked as the coolest this winter was the Prairies (23rd coolest, 0.0° C from normal). A listing of all the regional temperatures departures and rankings are presented in the winter regional temperatures table. The trends, extremes and current year rankings table shows that 10 of the 11 climate regions exhibit positive winter trends, with the Mackenzie District showing the greatest trend of 4.7°C over the 63 years of record. Conversely, Atlantic Canada is the only region with a negative trend of -0.3°C over the same period. Interestingly, the last time the Mackenzie District had a cooler than normal winter was back in 1993/1994.

Regional Precipitation
Nine of the eleven climate regions ranked among the ten driest winters with one, the South B.C. Mountains, experiencing its driest winter on record, 55.9% below normal. The other regions with high ranking dry winters this year were: North B.C. Mountains/Yukon (ranked 2nd driest, 50.9% below normal); Northwestern Forest (3rd driest, 43.0% below normal); Pacific Coast (4th driest, 31.8% below normal); Great Lakes/St. Lawrence (4th driest, 28.7% below normal); Atlantic Canada (4th driest, 21.2% below normal); Arctic Mountains and Fiords (6th driest, 44.1% below normal); Northeastern Forest (6th driest; 25.0% below normal); and the Prairies (9th driest, 38.9% below normal). None of the regions received enough precipitation to rank among the ten wettest winters, however, Arctic Tundra was the only region with wetter than normal conditions this winter (17.3% above normal, ranked 23rd wettest). All of the climate regions and their rankings for the 2009/2010 winter relative to the last 63 years are listed in the ranked regional precipitation table. A summary of this past winter's precipitation rankings for each region, along with the record wettest and driest years, are listed in the extremes and current year rankings table. Interestingly over the last decade the Arctic Tundra Region has not experienced a drier than normal winter, whereas the South B.C. Mountains Region has not experienced a wetter than normal winter over the same period.

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We have members from the States and Europe.  How were your winters, and are you lucky enough to have them still going strong with cold and snow? 

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"I firmly believe that far from hurting the planet, the growing knowledge of Bushcraft is helping our natural world.  When we employ bushcraft skills, it may seem as though we are consuming natural resources.  But of course, the more we learn about the trees, the plants, the animals around us, the more we respect them.  The more we respect them, the more we cherish them, the more we nurture and take care of them.  That is the underlying principle of Bushcraft."  Ray Mears, 2005.
Heikki Lunta
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« Reply #1 on: March 12, 2010, 01:54:56 PM »

Thanks Hoop
Thats great info for all the winter haters. But sad sobering news for this group.
We all have to look on the bright side if there is one. There were a few good cold days last winter.
Maybe all work will be cancelled next January and we can trek all month, bring it on.



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yardsale
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« Reply #2 on: March 12, 2010, 04:05:01 PM »

 A crew I ski with cancelled an April ski trip to Newfoundland due to lack of snow.
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Mike
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« Reply #3 on: March 13, 2010, 05:38:35 AM »

This winter really sucked as far as winter camping is concerned. Here in the Milwaukee area I THINK it got down below 0F once or twice. And that was just one or two degrees. If I see a weekend coming up where the temps will be WAY below normal I am GONE. I can only hope. I do believe though I used my stove for the last time this season three weeks ago and will soon be prepping it for storage  Cry
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Mike
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« Reply #4 on: March 14, 2010, 06:07:10 AM »

thanks Hoop  great information

Have to agree this winter really wasn't there. It was easier to walk in the bush with snow boots then to wear snowshoes. Only wore my heavy winter parka maybe 4 times and was able to work most days wearing a shirt and sweater.   Talking to a few of the dog sledders they said it ws bad and hard on the dogs as it was just to warm for them. Local ice road has turned into a real mess, lots of water on it and holes opening up all over it. Some of the local contractors have stopped using it (or close to it).

As for winter camping well that never happened for me this year... Sad

lets hope for a early winter in 2010
 





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crooked knife
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« Reply #5 on: March 16, 2010, 05:09:44 PM »

It was a sort of double whammy this winter for us here in N. Wisconsin.  We didn't have cold temps and we had a lot of cold fluffy lake effect snow, which covered all our ice when it was thin and was too insulated and never felt real cold.  So mobility was very limited this winter.  There were some beaver ponds I trapped that had spots the ice never froze near the lodges because of the snow depth.  Didn't get out as much as I usually do.  Though N. Minnesota had very little snow which helped thicken the ice when it got a good week or more of -30 in December.  After Dec though it was mild, thank god for the early cold to help thicken ice. 

I just got back from the gunflint trail and the snow is almost gone up there and the lake ice went from being wet on top to being dry and starting to "candle" by the time we left.  Though the ice was variable from lake to lake, it was very easy access though the approaches were starting to get pretty wet and recede from the shore.  The ice was still mostly 24-18 inches with 8-12 good solid ice on the bottom but as I said pretty fissured and dry on top.  If we continue to have 50 degree weather and sun it's gonna get sketchy quick. 

Joe E
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« Reply #6 on: March 20, 2010, 08:11:29 PM »

I probably live on the southern fringe of readers of this forum (Missouri).  We actually had a colder than normal winter, especially when compared to some of the really wimpy winters we've had in the past 10-12 years.  Not a lot of snow, but not unusually light, and it stuck around more because it was cold.

Maybe there's just not enough cold air to go around. Sad
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