Mount Shasta
Pericolo valanghe
In sintesi
Avalanche danger is low. Falling ice and rock are hazards for climbers on the upper mountain. Temperatures are warming and winds subsiding.
Avalanche Discussion
Yesterday was Candlemas.
If Candlemas be fair and bright,Winter has another flight.If Candlemas brings clouds and rain,Winter will not come again.
This Old English saying may bode well for us. Candlemas is an ancient Christian tradition when clergy would bless and distribute candles needed for winter. How many candles received was based on the expectations for the length of winter.
The germans in Europe began using a hedgehog to make this prediction. German settlers in Pennsylvania continued this tradition, but they used groundhogs which were more plentiful. The first Groundhog Day was February 2, 1887 at Gobbler's Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. As most of us know by now, the tradition says that if a groundhog comes out of its hole on this day and sees its shadow, becomes scared, and scurries back in, we'll get six more weeks of winter; no shadow means an early spring.
Yesterday, Punxsutawney Phil, the world's most famous groundhog, saw his shadow.
Other less famous forecasters include West Virginia's French Creek Freddie, Georgia's Gen. Beauregard Lee, Ohio's Buckeye Chuck, North Carolina's Sir Walter Wally, Louisiana's Cajun Groundhog, Alabama's Smith Lake Jake, Wisconsin's Jimmy and New York's Staten Island Chuck.
Since the tradition started in 1887, Punxsutawney Phil has been right 40% of the time. Let's hope he's right this year.