Predicting the Winter (Kearney, Bee: house, school, tornadoes)

[bluejeanbaby]

Okay- this is mainly just for amusement, BUT everyone I talk to has some old folk wisdom they are relying on for predicting the upcoming winter. Some of their ideas are interesting. They range from predicting frost from when you can hear the bugs at night, when a dense fog happens in the morning, how busy the squirrels are, and by looking at the colors on a whooly bully caterpillar. Those are just the ones I heard at the post office!

LOL

This could be fairly entertaining. I was always told to watch the cattle- if they were huddled together it would blizzard, if they were sitting down there would be lightening, if the flies were biting it would rain, if you could see the bottoms of the leaves blowing it would storm, etc.

Do you have any weather predictions or predictors?

[aerahrtlu]

Use a weather rock.
If it's wet - it's raining. If it's white - It's snowing. If it's hot - It's hot out. If it's cold - It's cold out.
LOL... Just kidding!
Umm.. I've heard 'Red in the morning; Sailors heed warning. Red at night; Sailors take delight.

[tpabes]

Cattle can also tell you which way the wind is blowing or which direction the storm is coming from. They will all be turned the same way. I have also heard the fog thing, if its foggy in August it will be a bad winter. Some people their bodies will tell when a storm is coming, they feel it in their knees. Pets can also be an indicator, while my dog isn't the best at winter predicting, he was going nuts this spring when the tornadoes hit Kearney. Then when the storms turned to go to the north of us, he calmed down.

My wife, who works in the school system, goes by her kids. If they are acting wild she says its going to storm. She has been right quite a bit. I have also heard about flies trying to get in the house.

[IsThisOneTaken?]

weather.com

[Dave1215]

Watch the Swallows: "Swallows high, staying dry; swallows low, wet will blow"

Watch the Bees: They predict the approach of rain and return to their hives and are unlikely to swarm before a storm.

Watch the Dogs: They sniff the air repeatedly before a change in the weather.

Watch the Chickens: "If the chickens stay out in the rain, the rain will be an all day rain, but if they run into the chicken house, it will be a short shower." Because they don't like the rain, thus "Mad as a Wet Hen"

Watch the Moon: The ring around the moon predicts snow.

[dogwalker425]

I just remind myself I live in Nebraska....winter will suck!

[bluejeanbaby]

Those are great! LOL



I believe in the kid prediction- I use mine all the time.

[bluejeanbaby]

My grandmother used to talk about "moondogs" and "sundogs" (No Gidget movie references either! LOL). I think they are rings of light around the sun/moon, but I don't remember what they represented.

You would think I was the 94 year old!

[SCGranny]

Ring around the moon - rain in three days.
Locusts singing - frost in six weks.
"Mackerel sky" - high clouds that look like fish scales - rain in three days.
There's no "wooly bears" here (small black fuzzy caterpillars) that I've found, so I can't tell by them if it will be a harsh winter by their 'coat' thickness. However, the squirrels haven't left a single nut on the ground, and THEY are thickly furred. The past few weeks we have been inundated with wasps and flies - even the locals have commented - which seems to indicate a long wet cold winter, if they are looking for places to hide.

Weather Underground (www.wunderground.com) is the best at weekly forecasting; much better than the Weather Channel. Everyone SAID it was going to snow here Friday and Saturday, but WU said no. And WU was right; they predicted lots of cold rain but not even a flurry. Since I grow plants, I watch the weather closely - and since I am new here, I am looking for patterns and indications, like from what directions storms come, what happens when a Directional wind blows, etc. Even tho the rain was coming from the South yesterday, when the wind shifted north, we drained the hydrants and hoses and put up the hoses, just to be safe. Most of our leaves haven't turned loose yet, and are still fairly green, so it seems winter might have a slow start. But if the indications are correct, it looks like a long wet winter. Grin. I just want enough snow by Christmas to do sculptures! LOL

[Sandhills Guru]

Well my dear ole departed Dad used to look at his coffee cup each morning. If the bubbles formed in the middle of the cup, we were in for a good day. On side, you could expect moisture before night fall he would always say.

And then if the frogs were singing to top of thier lungs, rain was in near future also he would say.

Also an east wind usually meant rain was not far behind.

And he would never fail to tell you when the first big flocks of geese or ducks were headed south, winter is around the corner. LOL

Lots of folks still look to the Farmer's Alamac for predictions, but I have found it to be farther off that those weather people on the local news at night.

And I have to add this one for predicting winter. Snow Birds on their annual trek south, when they began show up around the house, winter or colder temps were right behind. Now I am not talking the little feathered ones, but ones that would arrive in cars or truck with camper in tow. Seems our house was just a good days drive on their trek from northern North Dakota or Minnesota on their way to Texas each winter. I still laugh when I believe I can hear Dad saying here comes them snowbirds again.