Yet Another Record High Reached Today
(posted by Keno on Jan 4, 756 pm)

The number of new high temperature records made this winter season here in the Crestone-Baca is getting to be ridiculous, will winter ever really get here? Well yes, it will, but in the meanwhile, the spring like weather keeps our energy bills down. Today, we saw yet another record high, this time it was a tie for the record, but still a record nevertheless, when the thermometer rose up into the 50s and settled at 51 degrees at 144 pm. This record was first reached in 2001.

Warmest Ever December Temperature Record Broken
(posted by Keno on Jan 3, 1008 pm)

Well, we all know just how ridiculously warm it was this past December (other than for the first week), and now it's official, as the average temperature for the entire month was 30.7 degrees, and that breaks the highest temperature record for the month and goes down as the warmest December ever seen in the Crestone-Baca! The old record was 30.5 degrees, set in 2010. Now, while we only broke the record by just 0.2 degrees, both of these two records are just so outrageously high for the last month of the year, as the now third warmest December ever, is 28.8 degrees (seen in 2017), so 2010 and '25 are now the only two years since record keeping has been taken, where our area saw an average high each day of over 30 degrees!

On a good note, we also saw the lowest ever amount of Heating Degree Days (HDD) in December, as only 1,019 were seen in the month. What that means is that our heating bills were a lot lower than what they would have been in any average December (average HDD for December is 1,302). With the way our rates been going up so much in the last few years, well, our bills are still high anyway, but nowhere as high than they would have been if we had seen just a normal December.

Warmest Xmas Day Ever as 3 Record High Temperature Records are broken on December 25

(posted by Keno on December 26 at 100 am)

 The warmest Xmas day ever seen in the Crestone-Baca happened Thursday as not one, but three record high temperatures were broken for the date. The first record was for the high temperature reading, when the thermometer reached 54 degrees, breaking the old mark of 52 degrees, set back in 1999. But that wasn't the only record to fall, as two other firsts for Xmas day took place for the first time since records have been taken. Our area didn't see freezing temperatures for the holiday, as the low for the day was a warm 35 degrees, and that's a new record low high reading, destroying the old record of 27 degrees, which happened way back in 1987! With those record readings, well, that means the average temperature reading for the day was also broken - by a even more crazy margin of 10 full degrees! That old record of 33.5 degrees had also been reached in 1999.

These record breaking readings for our daily temperature have now taken place on six days in the last seven, and this string of days of temperatures at or above 50 degrees (6 days now) has also never occurred in December before in our area, and as noted a few days ago here, the number of days this month with temps above 40 degrees also is something never seen before. Perhaps even more interesting is up until Xmas day, we still have had a snowpack to report, thanks to the amount of snow that fell in the first week of December and the fact that the sun is at it's weakest in the last week of December. But with that noted, unless it snows tomorrow (Friday), our snowpack will be down to a trace, since snow coverage is now at just 50% of the land, and under that amount isn't measured any longer, as the snowpack is no more.

Warmest Xmas Eve Ever (perhaps the warmest year ever for our local area, too?)
(posted by Keno on December 25 at 118 am)

For the fifth time out of the last six days, the Crestone-Baca saw a record breaking high temperature reading for the date with temperatures once again above 50 degrees, when the thermometer rose all the way up to 54 degrees at 158 pm, breaking the old record of 47 degrees, set in 2005. That old record had already been broken early in the day, as by 1030 am Wednesday it was already 48 degrees. The normal high temp for the end of December should be at 31 degrees.

At the moment, while it's too soon to say this will be the warmest December ever on record (we got a way to go to see that happen, but it's still possible), we are looking at an excellent chance to see 2025 go down as the warmest year ever on record for the Crestone/Baca. Unless the last 7 days of the year cool down big time, that record looks like it will happen. More on that here when it's official.

Record High Temperatures seen in Crestone/Baca Friday thru Monday
(posted by Keno at 440 pm on December 19; updated at 445 pm on December 20; update 2 on December 21 at 806 pm; update 3 on December 23 at 215 am)

Today (Friday) in the Crestone-Baca, we destroyed the old daily record high temperature when the thermometer sped past the old record of 48 degrees and made it all the way to 52 degrees at 329 pm. The old record was set back in 2003.... Update: On the next day, Saturday, December 20, a record high temperature was tied at 51 degrees, at 1159 am. The first time this temp was reached on this date was back in 2004. Update 2: For the third day in a row, record high temperatures for the date were reached when we saw a high temp of 51 degrees at 158 pm, breaking the old record for December 21 of 49 degrees, and that record was set just last year.  Update 3: For December 22, the Crestone/Baca saw for the 4th day in a row record high temperatures, and the highest reading so far this month, as the thermometer top out at 55 degrees, breaking the old record of 50 degrees (set in 2005) by 5 degrees. This not only marked the 4th day in a row with thermometer readings above 50 degrees, but the 13th day in a row with temps above 40 degrees this month, and that has broken the record for the most days in December with readings of 40 degrees or higher.

Seasonal Snow Spotters are always needed and wanted!
(posted by Keno on October 4 at 827 am)
 
I'm always looking for new volunteer weather spotters, especially snow spotters, for our area for this new snow season.

What is needed to be a snow spotter? Just a ruler - or a yard stick for when it snows a lot, while a rain gauge, a snow board (no, not the kind you ski on, but the original white snow board used by the NWS to measure snow on) and a snow rule would be even better (but only a few of our spotters have them). A home weather station is real cool to have too, especially to report temperatures on record cold nights! But for being a snow spotter alone, only a everyday ruler is needed to be one!

Places where we need new spotters the most? Do understand: All locations in our entire area are important locations (!), so even if we have a spotter in one area already, any new spotters are still welcome to join our team! But, where do we need new spotters the most for this new season? Well, we are down to just one spotter in the Grants, so we could use 2 more, since the Grants cover a wide open area. Our lone spotter there is on the western side by Willow Creek. We also need at least one new spotter in Chalet 2, it may be a small area, but it's the one spot that sees the most different snow totals from other areas in our town, and usually sees the most snow per storm, but then again, not always, sometimes it sees the least, too. So we all miss not having a spotter there anymore! We've always have needed a spotter in Casita Park, it's the only spot on the local map where we never have had one! But I hope each year we'll get one and I'm still hoping!.... Will the 2025-26 snow season see our first one? I also would love to have a new spotter 15 miles away in Moffat, as my grandson Cooper, no longer lives out there. While Moffat sees the least snow in our small town's area, knowing what they get out that way is so very important for locals here in the Crestone/Baca who - as we all know, must pass thru Moffat on our way out of town heading north or south on highway 17. So knowing snow totals out that in the valley before traveling, is important indeed to us in the foothills, especially since CDOT removed the live cams we used to have out that way and we all relied on and miss seeing.
 
In Chalet 1, besides myself, we have 2 solid spotters, and sometimes a third, and all 3 of them do a great job (as all our spotters do!). Last year we had 2 spotters in or around the town of Crestone and I believe both of them will return, and again, 2 very important spotters who supplied us with great reports! The one spot in Crestone where we never have had a spotter is around or in the area of, the western side of town, and we could sure use one over there! We have one excellent spotter off T Road in the Baca Townhouses, sure hope he's be back for this season. We never have had any spotter in Chalet 3 (!), it might be only that one long block, but it's still an important area, too and I'd love to see somebody there join our team for this season. I also have an on and off spotter in the Two Trees area, which is of course a good bridge area between the Chalets and Grants, so a second spotter there would be helpful. Then, one of our former spotters from the Grants, who moved well north of here deep in the woods, yet I can't recall now exactly where she is at.... But, it's a great location and I hope she returns again this season, too! BTW, to all my current spotters, I haven't forgotten to get ahold of you in emails yet, like I do at the start of each new season, but I got in a new snow measuring video you should enjoy watching, which I'll be sending to you soon.

Now, and again, even in all of the places I noted above where we do have spotters - more new reporters are always wanted and are always welcomed to join us! So to anybody who wants to join us - anywhere in our area, please email me at keno@fairpoint.net if you would like to join our Crestone-Baca Spotter Team and I can tell you a bit more on how easy it is to join our local team in doing this fun community service! All I need to know on my end in your email is: Your name, where in town you are located - and at what elevation you are at. Do note that your exact address is not needed, just your location, and since some spotters don't wish to be named online (in our snow report), I won't do that unless you tell me you don't mind being named. But yes, all locals are welcome to join us in reporting snowfall for our greater area! So please do so this snow season in reporting snow totals if you feel like joining us! Thanks!
 
Keno