And then the rain came...

[Slo-go'en]

Thru hikers have had really nice weather for NH and Maine this September. Warm, calm, clear skies, little to no rain. Ideal. But now the ones left trying to get through Maine and finish are about to have a rough week. And there are a lot of them. I was still seeing NOBO's passing through Gorham as of a few days ago.

Up to 3" of rain from the current storm, then another 3" possible when the tropical storm gets here on the weekend. Flash flood warnings all through NH and Maine. Those easy rock hop fords in the HMW will suddenly become a bit more difficult with all this rain. Maine is hard enough when it's dry. It gets down right treacherous in the rain. At least it's still reasonably warm. That might change when these storms pull away and drag some cold air down from Canada.

But we really need this rain. I need this rain. If the rain doesn't knock down too many leaves it should perk up the fall colors which up to now have been pretty disappointing. A lot of them have simply been turning brown and falling off the trees since it's been so dry. It's just now finally starting to look like fall around here, about 2 weeks late.

[rafe]

The rain here in MA is torrential. I'm meeting a friend for lunch, one town over, and wondering what I'll encounter on the road.

[Venchka]

Be safe Y'all. Flooded streams are deadly. Finishing can wait.

Wayne

[Venchka]

Yikes!
Berlin, NH Regional Radar


Radar 09-30-15.JPG

Wayne
In the desert known as Houston, Texas

[rafe]

Was reading on FB where a few folks were loitering in Millinocket, hoping to finish tomorrow if the rains subside. K definitely not accessible today.

[BillyGr]

One thing that seems odd with forecasts - they keep showing rain over the weekend but at the same time show the predictions of the hurricane track that shows it just reaching parts of NY by Monday - so is that another storm hitting over the weekend aside from the hurricane?

[egilbe]

K won't be accessible until after the hurricane blows by early next week.

[Nooga]

Be safe Y'all. Flooded streams are deadly. Finishing can wait.

Wayne

Good advice!!!

[wormer]

Thinking of the six lady hikers I saw in the middle of the 100 MW yesterday that were doing a section hike. I was slowed somewhat by the mild rain we were having yesterday. The trail in that area is probably covered in water in some areas.

[Slo-go'en]

The rain is starting to clear out of the Whites now, but it will linger in Maine for a while. It now looks like it will clear out some time tomorrow and be nice but cold (lows in the low 30's) until the tropical storm moves in Monday-Tuesday but it's still too far out to really know what will happen or the exact timing. So, they have at least a couple day window to make some progress.

If you want to see fall foliage up here, the next few days or this weekend if the storm stays away will likely be the best we see this year.

My first time through the HWM I got caught in the remnants of a hurricane about 1/2 way through. It was an interesting 24 hours, which lucky started about noon and ended about noon so we didn't loose too much ground.

[wormer]

I will second Slo-go'n, the foliage east of Moosehead was good yesterday. The colors on the trees were excellent along the dirt roads.

[rickb]

K won't be accessible until after the hurricane blows by early next week.

Is there a place where one can find information on when the mountain is closed due to rain?

i checked the park's Facebook page and did't find anything there.

[Water Rat]

Is there a place where one can find information on when the mountain is closed due to rain?

i checked the park's Facebook page and did't find anything there.

I would check here: http://www.baxterstateparkauthority.com/ You can see the forecast off to the right. They will also post closures (road, etc) on this site.

The weather looks to be a heck of a lot drier tomorrow! Good thing, because I am pretty sure the trail through the HMW qualifies as aqua-blazing today. Winds are supposed to pick up this evening. While helpful for drying things out, the ground is super-soaked right now and people need to be on the watch for falling trees.

I do hope everyone who has river/stream fords (in Maine) in the next couple of days, chooses to use a bit of extra caution. We got a lot of water today and I hope that nobody chooses to underestimate even the (usually) smaller streams.

[Slo-go'en]

NH went from one the driest Septembers on record to one of the wettest (#20) in the last two days of the month.

[Hangfire]

A year ago today I was entering the 100 mile wilderness, and I was stressed out of my mind without serious weather. There should be lots of the walking wounded struggling through this stuff trying to make it to Katahdin in time, my thoughts are with them.

[moggd]

Is lightning common throughout this area?

[Kaptainkriz]

I think it's the remnants of a storm dropping inches all over us here in MD all week. The hurricane, should it make landfall, is a separate event.

One thing that seems odd with forecasts - they keep showing rain over the weekend but at the same time show the predictions of the hurricane track that shows it just reaching parts of NY by Monday - so is that another storm hitting over the weekend aside from the hurricane?

[Slo-go'en]

Is lightning common throughout this area?

In July during thunderstorm season. This year was pretty quiet, but we've had some good lightning at times in the past.

[mattjv89]

It was a heck of a storm! I finished on Katahdin today, hiked in from Abol in the rain yesterday. The Ranger at BSP was saying 5-6 inches in the area, it rained for about 24 hours straight. Took the high water bypass on the way into Katahdin Stream, we got to the fork and said OK if we're shouting at each other over the sound of the stream fording isn't going to be pretty. But all was well today, the weather miraculously cleared and we had great views on Katahdin as well as some very cool undercast clouds. Sure was chilly and breezy though! Aside from about one mile of Hunt Trail being a running stream bed today there was no affect on the trail there. The Rangers radio was lighting up with traffic about downed trees and flooded roads so maybe not the same for the rest of BSP. Slo was absolutely right that the weather has been fantastic overall, I did not miss a single mountain view nor hike a day in the rain till yesterday through the entire state of Maine. That was a nasty cold storm but can't complain a bit all things considered.


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