Submitted by Bill Caulfeild-Browne
The month was cooler than average for April but only by 0.7C. The mean temperature was 3.0C, the first month of the year when the mean was above freezing. The coldest night was the 5th at -4.2C while the warmest day was Easter Monday when the mercury got well into the teens at 17.3C.
We had some pretty windy days. The first three days saw gusts up to 60 kms/hr and at the end of the month, on the 26th, we had sustained winds of 26 kms/hr which peaked at 65 kms/hr. Overall, April was windier than usual.
Precipitation was also more than usual, a trend that seems to be taking hold in recent years. Long term, rain and snow have amounted to about 60 mm. in April, and the average for my station has been 64 mm. But this April saw 99 mm. fall and several recent years have been well above normal – 155 mm. in 2011, 136 mm. in 2013 and 124 mm. in 2017. The recent flooding in much of Eastern Canada is a testament to these changing conditions.
It was an interesting month for Big Tub, as April usually is. The ice broke up early in the month and was blown north – only to return a few days later. This seesaw continued for a week or two until only traces remained. Little Tub was clear by the end of the month. Even so, a couple of frosty nights in May have resulted in thin skims of ice on the lake.
Sunshine was about average for April. It was dawn-til-dusk sunny for 12 days and only four days were completely cloudy. May has started out with abundant sunshine and warmer days as one would expect – and as one hopes will continue!
