08 January 2015

Ice Ice Baby

Freezing Rain Advisory
Statement as of 4:33 AM AKST on January 08, 2015

 ...Freezing Rain Advisory remains in effect until noon akst today...

* ice accumulation...less than one tenth of an inch.

* Timing...light freezing rain will begin early this morning and continue through the morning hours then taper off around noon.

* Impacts...travel may be difficult. Be prepared for slippery roads.

The nice cold air was here for a few days, but now temps are heading north again (if you'll pardon the expression) and we're back in the icy/melty/wintry mix.

Dang it.

For those of you who admonished me, last fall, to keep the winter weather up here: you'll have to be meaner to the weatherman than I was. He's ignoring us.

* * * * *

And speaking of cold weather:


For the fourth time, to diminishing fanfare, Lonnie Dupre is trying to do what has never been done: Reach the summit of Mount McKinley, alone, in the supremely inhospitable month of January.

Three previous attempts --  which started in December of 2010, 2011 and 2012  -- ended with the adventurer retreating from the mountain after being pinned down for days in snow trenches, nearly suffocated by blizzards and half-frozen by temperatures of 35 below.
Lonnie Dupre leaves base camp on the Kahiltna Glacier December 18, 2014. He is attempting to climb Denali solo.        John Walter Whittier

8 comments:

Vicki said...

I've been trying to send some of our cold your way, but so far it's not working. :) Seriously, I would rather deal with our cold than your freezing rain. That stuff is dangerous!

Rev. Paul said...

I agree, Vicki. The only mitigating factor is that we have studded tires.

And I don't care how cold it gets, here, as long as it gets cold in the first place.

Cathy said...

Freezing rain. Been there done that last week.
We're now enjoying 0 degrees. Lovely :)

As for Lonnie . . . Well . . . hope he's wearing a GPS transponder so they can keep an eye on him.

Rev. Paul said...

Cathy, this weather pattern (a "pineapple express" airflow from Hawaii) is horrible.

Lonnie has been camping at the 14,000 ft mark, so he's still 6,320+ feet below the summit.

Sandy Livesay said...

Rev. Paul,

If you or your family have to drive on that freezing rain, be careful!!!

I'm ready to ship this weather back to where it came from!!!

Rev. Paul said...

Sandy, driving is inescapable, as we all work. But as for shipping it somewhere/anywhere else, I'm with you!

joated said...

I have lots of admiration for guys like this solo climber.

I think they're nuts, but I have to admire their spirit.

Rev. Paul said...

Well said, joated - I completely agree.