Submitted by Bill Caulfeild-Browne
Precipitation records for Tobermory go back to 1888, though there are many gaps until 1916 when continuous data commences. Those data show that the record for rain and snowfall occurred in November 1966 and amounted to 205 mm..
July 2021 yielded 214.8 mm, making it not simply the wettest July on record, but the wettest of any month. I was sufficiently suspicious of the accuracy of my rain gauge that I checked it against a pan of rainwater, with a good old fashioned ruler. It was right on. The most rain fell on the 24th, over 55 mm. – or better than two inches. Surprisingly there were only eight rainy days – it’s just that when it did rain, it really poured.
I also checked the Environment Canada station at the airport which recorded over 170 mm. “Thunder rain” can be very localized so I’m not surprised the total was different from mine. Even so, the EC figure confirms the wettest July on record – beating the 163 mm. received in July 1970.
We were not unique. Environment Canada states that “In Southern Ontario, precipitation ranged from average to well above average. Manitoulin Island and areas in cottage country saw the largest departure from normal as they received more than double their seasonal values”. In fact Tobermory received over three times more.
It was also a slightly cooler month than normal, with a mean temperature of 17.7C, There were no truly hot days – the warmest was 26.8C on the 23rd, less than the warmest days in May and June. July was the first month this year to be below normal. Sunshine was much less prevalent than usual too – partly due to the clouds that gave us so much rain, but also from the smoke haze that drifted down from the forest fires in Northern Ontario. These gave us some lovely sunsets but bad smelling air.
Previously I have mentioned the trend towards “higher lows and lower highs” which I believe is a result of climate change. The mean temperatures stay much the same but nights don’t get as cool and the days are not as hot.
August has started out cloudy and humid but at least it’s warm. The whole story will be revealed next month!
