Cold Summits: Winter Hiking
by Meteorologist Chris Tomer
11/8/2008

     Hiking Colorado's highest peaks in Winter is a different animal.  Snow, ice, high wind, and of course bitter cold pose significant risks.   On a recent trip to the summit of Torrey's Peak via Kelso ridge I encountered mixed conditions requiring ice axe, crampons, and a healthy dose of common sense.

 Summit temperature: 10F

Some interesting low clouds hugging the terrain...

 Here is a question from viewer Les Gomez of Littleton:

Hi Chris: Watch your newscast almost every night at about 9:16 PM.

 I have always wondered why is humidity expressed as "relative".

 What is it relative to? Thanks and regards.

Hi Les-     When we report “relative humidity” it is expressed as a percent of saturation of the air.  For example, 50% rh means the air contains about ½ of what it can hold at that temperature.  Because the total amount of moisture (the gas, water vapor) the air can hold varies with temperature, the humidity is relative to the air temperature.  A more absolute measurement of moisture in the air is dew point.  The dew point temperature is the temperature at which the air would be completely saturated.  The temperature/dew point spread can tell you how much moisture is in the air and the difference is the “relative” humidity.  Here is an example:  An 80 degree day in Denver in the summer feels pretty pleasant because the humidity is low…dew point of 35 degrees with an air temperature of 80 degrees = 12% relative humidity.  On the other hand, an 80 degree day in Miami, Florida in the summer (actually, it would rarely be that COOL in the summer in Miami) with a typical dew point temperature of 75 degrees = 81% relative humidity.  Same air temperature, but you have a long way to go in order to get that moisture in the air to condense in Denver than Miami. 

Snow on Halloween?
by Meteorologist Chris Tomer
10/24/2008

      It's a widely held belief that it 'usually' snows on Halloween in Denver.  54 years of weather records point to something different.  Measurable snow occurs 1 out of every 7 Halloween's on average.  Measurable snow is defined as an inch or more as measured at the old Stapleton Airport.
      Will it snow measurably this Halloween?  Stay tuned.

     The last measurable Halloween occurred back in 2004 when about two inches accumulated!

-CT

October: Dates to Remember
by Meteorologist Chris Tomer

     Winter weather starts creeping into our forecasts in October.  Some dates to keep in mind:

Along the Front Range.....
Average First Freeze: October 7
Average First Measurable Snow: October 19

You can extend the life of your garden if you keep a close eye on forecasts and overnight lows.

Chris

Day 1: With 26 anglers onboard the Angler, the boat was on its way by 11 a.m. The crew loaded up the bait tanks with live sardines on our way out of San Diego Bay. We then cleared Point Loma and headed South. There would be no fishing on this day. The time was spent rigging up for the days ahead. Skipper Brian Kiyohara gave a brief safety talk and an overview of what we could expect for the days ahead. That was followed by a tackle and rigging seminar held by the deckhands. It’s definitely a team effort on the American Angler.

Day 2: Just before first light, Skipper Brian shut down the engines, explaining that we were in the right area, but that we had to wait until it was light enough to begin trolling and looking for kelp paddies (floating clumps of seaweed that attract fish). We stopped shortly thereafter on a blind jig strike which ended up being the first yellowfin tuna of the day. I hooked a dorado that was so small I didn’t even realize I had him! The fish was quickly sent back to his place in the sea and we continued the trolling in search of the next school.

A fish here, a jig strike there, nothing really that would knock your socks off about this day of fishing, until…BOOM! Around 11:30 a.m. skipper Brian and his crew spotted a kelp paddy that was marked by a large inflated trash bag. Obviously another boat had been here and thought this one was worthy of pointing out to others who may be headed down this way. I can tell you this: It did not disappoint! The water was full of life. It was like watching fish in an aquarium in the clear offshore waters. First came the dorado, then micro-sized yellowtail, then the yellowfin tuna followed by a round of skipjack tuna. The action was about as fast and furious as it gets. Every bait found a fish. The only question was what kind.

As soon as I cast a sardine away from the boat, I automatically put the reel in gear and didn’t have to wait long to get bit. We’re talking 5 seconds or less and you had a fish on. It was that quick! The action lasted for about 2 hours, during which our group managed to put nearly 200 fish on the boat. Most of the yellowfin were of the decent school-sized variety in the 15-25 pound range. After the fish scales settled we began heading in the direction of Guadalupe Island, the next stop on this five day fishing adventure.

Day 3: We arrived at Guadalupe Island before sunrise, hoping to take advantage of what had been a steady bite on larger yellowfin tuna. These were the kind that average between 50 and 100 pounds. However, the bite really seemed to take a turn for the worse on our first day visiting the island. Only three of the bigger tuna were caught through the course of the morning, including a 66 pounder reeled in by Martha Bummer of La Crescenta, CA.

When the desired bite failed to materialize, Skipper Brian moved the boat in a little closer to the island so we could drop the anchor and perhaps entice a passing school of tuna along with some of the big homeguard yellowtail this island is famous for. We took care of both on this stop. In what could be referred to as a slow but steady pick, we caught another two dozen school-sized yellowfin tuna along with nearly 30 Guadalupe Island yellowtail. Some were on the surface, being caught on fly-lined sardines, and some were on the bottom where the dropper loop and a heavy lead weight was the ticket.

Even this bite slowed as the wind came up on the afternoon. By dinnertime, skipper Brian announced to everyone that we would stay at Guadalupe for one more day to try and get some better action out of the big fish that we knew were there. In the meantime, we would anchor up for the night on the quiet leeward side of the island and enjoy a pleasant night on the water catching small mackerel to supplement our bait supply.

Day 4: Same drill as the day before. We begin searching for schools of larger tuna. They have been hanging out under pods of black porpoise, so when you find the porpoise, the tuna aren’t far behind. We did find the porpoise and the tuna, but getting them to bite was once again a tough chore. Following our successful change in plans from the day before, we anchored up and started catching quality-sized yellowtail. After a few dozen forktails came over the rail, Skipper Brian decided to see what we could find farther up the lee side of Guadalupe Island.

Stopping on a spot of fish he saw on the sonar, we found a school of yellowfin that wanted to bite! They weren’t the jumbos approaching 100-pounds that had been caught in this area, but a respectable 20-30 pound average. The rest of the day was spent in search of the bigger fish to top off our success from earlier in the trip. We did find one more of the big guys. Actually, Martha Bummer found it…on the end of her line! This one was in the 60-pound range.

At the end of the day we were left with a few options on how we would end this trip. Skipper Brian decided to leave the island and head for an area just Northwest of San Martin Island where the yellowfin tuna were being targeted by boats on shorter trips. This would give us another ½ day of fishing before we had to head back to the dock.

Day 5: The weather on this trip had been great up until the last day of fishing. A steady wind out of the Northwest produced waves of 5-8 feet. As we got closer to the beach the thinking was that the wind would die down and the sea would mellow. That thinking (forecast) wasn’t exactly what happened. The wind continued to blow and the sea continued to bounce our 90’ boat around. Despite this challenge we did manage to find more fish that wanted to bite. One kelp paddy held school-sized yellowfin tuna along with more micro yellowtail and tiny dorado.

The rest of the day was basically scratch fishing, adding to a total of 35 tuna we added to the refrigerated seawater fish hold. With the weather still up and the fish down, skipper Brian decided to call it a trip at 3 p.m., with plenty of fish for everyone and a long trip home. We will arrive around 6 a.m. the next morning following a “waffles on the bay” breakfast.

One thing I didn’t mention about the trip is the food. Words could not do it justice! Chef Paul and his assistant Nate prepared some truly fantastic meals. You will not go hungry on one of these trips. The rest of the crew performed flawlessly. They obviously want to see us catching fish. But more importantly, they are all about making sure you have a good time. We did.

Fall Color Locations: Where To Go
by Meteorologist Chris Tomer
9/18/2008

    As I presented on Good Day Colorado on 9/17/2008 here are several proven locations to view "Colorado Gold" late September & early October 2008:

     Rabbit Ears Pass
     Estes Park & Rocky Mountain National Park
     Guanella Pass
     Cottonwood Pass 
     Monarch Pass
     Kenosha Pass
     Kebler Pass - "West Elk Loop"
     The Grand Mesa
     Tennessee Pass
      Independence Pass


-Chris

Fall Color 2008 Update
9/16/2008

     Fall color in the mountains of Colorado is one week BEHIND schedule this year.  Forecast: The peak of color looks to occur during the last week of September and the first week of October - rather than the normal mid to late September.  Why?  Heavy winter snow and ample summer moisture.

    Fall color at the lower elevations of Colorado is two weeks AHEAD of schedule this year.  Forecast:  The peak of color looks to occur late September - rather than early to mid October.  Why?  Drier than normal conditions this summer.

   Some of this information is courtesy Tony Hahn of Swingle Tree Company.

Chris

At 9:04p.m., when the weather came up it spelled cloudy  "clowdy" . Where did spell check fail?

Montana's Highest Mountain: Granite Peak
by Meteorologist Chris Tomer

     Joined my best friend Jon Kedrowski for a climb up Montana's highest mountain Granite Peak at 12,799 feet.  Granite is located in the Absaroke-Beartooth Wilderness in southwest Montana.  We climbed the 26-mile roundtrip mountain using one overnight basecamp at Mystic Lake.  Montana offers some of the most pristine and wild wilderness in the lower 48. 

Mystic Lake


Granite Peak using "Froze-to-Death Plateau" approach


Me at the "Snow Bridge" halfway to the summit.


The technical ridge leading to the summit.


Jon and me on the summt:  12,799 feet.


The descent....back through Class-4 & 5 chimney's. 


Jon descending.....


A strong thunderstorm loaded with cool, dense air enveloped Granite's summit as we departed.

We were coming home down highway 285 this afternoon when we saw the huge storm clouds through the mountains.  We knew they were bug but didn't know exactly where they were until we arrived home.

The size of them from a distance was unbelievable.  Not just the heighth but the width.  I have never seen a storm that big.  The clouds were actually very beautiful from where we were.

Hi,

  Live in Stroh Ranch in Parker. Tornado was apox 1 mile straight west of me off of Stroh Rd.  Begining of tornado, touch down end.

 Hi! I'm living in Conifer for 5 year and around my house is like a Zoo...?

Them I want to share my wildlife photos here.

 Enjoy!

What do you have to say re:   your experience as the   E.P.A.   ????asssuming  Enviromental Protection Agency  and  the  pollution I  mused about from the  train cars of sulpher   goin  up  and  down  this part of Colorado.

Any complaints ever formally filed to the extent of the  cycle of  clouds, atmospheric winds, and cloudbursts redepositing  the sulpher  escapin into the  air  [we breath] and recycling into the sidewalks, parking lots, etc    drain gutter places that are stopped up with leafs and other debri???

The  yellow  edging I notice after puddles of rain fill certain low  spots where  these  pools lie ever catch anyone elses attention?