I haven't looked beyond our weather, but certainly the Norwest winds that we get are based on your strong westerly wind, which then goes into the Tasman Sea and picks up water as it crosses. Reaching the west side of NZ's South Island, it is too heavy to get over the Southern Alps, so it drops its water on the West Coast. The wind blows up over the Alps and rushes down the eastern side, the wild Norwester we are so familiar with. As it nears the sea, it is very warm, even in spring and autumn. We also see a low arch cloud formation.  It's a fohn wind.

I find Foehn winds quite interesting, especially graphics of them - the explanation behind them. Maybe this is partly because I love mountains, ha.

I have not posted in here in far too long, but have kept up with the various posts.

We had a long, hot, dry summer, which extended well into September, and even early October. In fact, Instant Weather Ontario reported that on October 6,

"Toronto hit 28 °C, marking the warmest October 6 ever recorded in the city’s history. The unseasonable heat shattered previous highs for the date and made it feel more like mid-summer than fall. The last time temperatures came close was in 1913, when the city reached 27.2 °C — making yesterday’s heat a standout moment in Toronto’s weather records."

Sure hoping we do not have a summer like this again for a loooong time. Last summer (2024) was much more manageable - cooler, with very decent rain fairly regularly.

We were up in the Québec Laurentian mountains for a week over our Canadian Thanksgiving, and arrived just at the peak of colour there. Absolutely gorgeous! Hiking up Mont Roche (in parc national du Tremblant) was a huge treat, including a lot of great exercise). The climb was nicely moderate (even challenging in spots), and the view at the top was stunning all around, as we looked around the multi-coloured vista, the trees looking like vibrant puffballs from this altitude, with Lac Supérieur spread out before us.

Then we arrived back home (mid-October) to find our trees are not yet at their peak here. This is what we were hoping for: two Autumn peaks this year! However, in the couple of days after being home, the weather changed, and the green started changing rapidly to vibrant oranges, reds, yellows. Some of are many maples around our property have just begun to fall; other are still turning from green to various beautiful colours. Our peak here in SW Ontario is very late this year.

Thankfully we had abundant rain last week, every day. The clouds were beautiful, with some rainbows tucked in toward day's end, and at times it was so dark in the middle of the day that lights had to be put on. During the few brilliant sunny spells, the inside of our home looked like an orange spotlight was shining in, with the reflection of the trees' colours very strong. Beautiful!

This morning on my walk (630), I reveled in a sparkling frost all around. Crisp, clear, around -3C / 26.6F. My favourite type of walking weather! The night sky was absolutely stunning. 

The long-range forecast for our area is a lot of snow November through January. Hurrah!  

This coming week we expect low single digits for nighttime temps; daytimes have high single digits, with more rain coming Wednesday through the rest of the week.  

Love, love, love Autumn!

 A few days ago Spring had reached a lovely point, with everyone's gardens suddenly full of flowers, and lawnmowers busy. Yesterday it rained, and we had quite blustery afternoon/overnight gales. The hills beside my city may have snow on them, but I could only see must when I peeped out at 7am. 

At least my garden has been well watered. Today I'll wrap myself up well for the errands i need to do. Out with woollen jerseys and a raincoat. Ironically, this is my last few days here before I head to UK and autumn to work in a Christmas show. 

So far, the 39C temperatures we were promised on October 22nd never eventuated, & 37C was the worst we got. A week later, the temperature is down, & finally it is raining here. It is "snowing down south", in Hobart, we have been told, and even here in Sydney it is currently about 18C, not even 20C. 

Tonight's Halloween weather for the little trick or treaters is a bit brisk and wet: drizzle with a temperature of 39F/4C, just slightly below average. But we've had no snow yet despite November being just hours away.

The next week may feature warm(ish) days mixed with cooler ones, with possible rain chances.

Some fall colors remain in the Twin Cities.

The US returns to standard time this weekend, meaning our sunset time on Sunday will be 4.59pm, a really effective reminder that winter can't be far away. It will be months before the sunset time passes 5pm again.

This evening also marks the beginning of Samhain, the ancient cross-quarter day that marks the approximate halfway point between the September (autumn) equinox and the December (winter) solstice.

@stargazer Tonight's Halloween weather for the little trick or treaters is a bit brisk and wet: drizzle with a temperature of 39F/4C, just slightly below average

Friday night's weather was a bit chilly Down Under, and the rest of the family had much fun handing out "treats" with the outfits mainly the tricks. No teenagers much when HSC exams are in full swing in Sydney, though houses get decorated to celebrate the occasion for a bit of fun. We have a witch on a broom, complete with spider, bought at a wayside stall at a servo on the way home one weekend, decades ago, that we hang in an archway, plus an old torch which makes spooky sounds, like howling wolves or creaking doors, depending on which button you press. Then, after sunset, the weather broke, and a wild storm drove everyone back home again. It must have passed directly overhead, & lightning flashes lit the back yard so much so, as if it was a bowl brimming with light, & I swear, sitting in the kitchen by the window on my left, that one flash of lighting passed through the glass across my eyes, harmlessly fading away on my right. It was a nice drop of rain, but by this morning it had gone. 

We went to a thanksgiving dinner tonight at Church, on All Saints Night. Not a festivity celebrated like Halloween. 

My first full day in London, and after rain and wind yesterday afternoon we've got a lovely sunny day, not too breezy, and with blue sky.

Unexpected, because it's late autumn, only 30 days from winter!  

Yes, I agree that there can be lovely days, weather wise, even in Britain, though they could be a bit cool for my taste. Down here, the purple Jacaranda blossoms are scattered everywhere, what birds are around are singing, and Spring in Australia can also be beautiful. 

Now in the North of England, and it's still mild but rainy. I'm glad I packed my raincoat as a good top layer over a woollen layer. Today I'm visiting an old friend from the Into The Wardrobe forums (20 - 35 years ago). He lives in a seaside suburb, and last time I visited it was raining solidly. Hoping to see it more at its best today.

Meanwhile, here in the Upper Midwest it remains generally dry. The newest Drought Monitor (which will be released tomorrow) will likely show the expansion of drought around here.

But this means dry, beautiful autumn days to enjoy what's left of the season. Many leaves have fallen but there is still plenty of gold and yellow out there. The sky is crystal blue by day and full of stars at night. Temperatures are running above average, with highs approaching 65F/18C yesterday.

But the 'atmospheric river' in the eastern Pacific, now affecting the Pacific Northwest states, will likely bring unsettled weather by the weekend, even the possibility of the season's first snow.

And in just the few days since the last post, our weather has turned. We had wind chills around 15F/-9C overnight, with the season's first snow (just a few flurries) falling before midnight last night (Sunday evening). Today's high will be a toasty 34F/2C. Warmer weather is expected later in the week.

But today's blustery, chilly, cloudy weather seems perfect to recall that 50 years ago this evening "the gales of November came early" and brough the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald in eastern Lake Superior.

Here, the day before Hallowe'en was rainy and windy, and this weather lasted into the 31st. Thankfully, the rain let up by trick-or-treating time.

The majority of our leaves have finally fallen (what a gorgeous, colour-saturated Autumn it was!), but we still have a few maples that are determined to hang on, which has made these past couple of days kind of humorous because ... we had our first beautiful snowfall yesterday and overnight, even into today. So, there is the challenge of mowing/mulching/raking the remaining mostly orange leaves when there is 6"+ of snow on the ground. It really is lovely out. My walks in this cold, white beauty (yet not bitterly so) are almost indescribable. 

The temperature dropped quickly yesterday as the wintry system rolled in. During the day, the windchill was near -10C / 14F, with snow and squalls all around.

However, this is changing over the next week, as temperatures rise to more seasonal (mid - high single digits Celsius daytime; near freezing at night), with rain off and on. But no doubt we will get back to snow soon enough!  

Meanwhile in the North of England, the colder autumn weather is about to arrive. There hasn't been much rain in the two weeks I've been here. I set out from blue sky and sunshine at Leeds, but soon after we passed York it became low cloud and light rain. 

Colder air is poised to return as early as this evening. The high today was an astonishing 72F/22C, a new record for the date. For reference the average high this time of year is 43F/6C. It will likely be months before it is this warm again. It remains warm after sunset right now, but it's cloudy so I can't enjoy one last evening under the stars.

A cold front arrives overnight, with tomorrow's high struggling to reach 50F/10C. Quite a change!

There is a small chance of rain or snow over the next few days.