How much snow fell anyway?

Morning After Snowstorm, North Amherst MA
Photo by S. Vardatira, 3/8/2018

By the ruler, 5.75" of heavy, wet snow is currently on the ground here in North Amherst. So why are we hearing official totals in the 10" to 12" range for Amherst? National Weather Service guidelines for measuring snow take into account several special situations that require a different approach to gauging totals. And yesterday we had one of those special situations. The snow was so wet and heavy that as new snow was falling it was pressing down, condensing, and even melting the snow under it. In a more typical situation, the guideline is to measure snowfall totals using a uniform flat surface, clearing that surface no more than four times in a 24-hour period, measuring the amount of new snow that falls each time, and adding those amounts together. That would not have worked yesterday. For about 4 hours yesterday afternoon, while it was snowing hard (and I wasn't clearing my surface and re-measuring new snowfall), I kept getting the same total as the new, heavy wet snow condensed the snow under it. The only way to get a more accurate reading yesterday was to clear the surface and re-measure more frequently. I did not stick with it enough to offer up an official reading, but that's how this morning's official Amherst reading gets to 10"-12." And this also explains why clearing off your car this morning is so much harder than you would think 6 inches would be.

(Photo I took this morning is further proof this is not just a typical 6 inch snowfall. It's heavy and sticky.)

Bombogenesis Approaches

Winter Storm Riley to Undergo Bombogenesis, Becoming an Intense Nor'easter
With Coastal Flooding, High Winds, Heavy, Wet Snow in the East
The Weather Channel, 3/1/2018

As everyone must be aware by now, a truly classic nor'easter (bombogenesis is the popular term) is going to be impacting southern New England overnight tonight all the way into Saturday. The feed from the Taunton Skywarn office is on overdrive right now. Of course, where you are is going to make a big difference in how you experience this storm. What will happen around Amherst is still something of a close call, with increasing potential for some amount of heavy wet snow. And while two inches of heavy wet snow wouldn't incapacitate us, five inches or more (which currently does seem somewhat unlikely in the Valley) could be a whole different story. This an "expect the best, prepare for worst" situation. Meanwhile, here's an excerpted recap of the coming storm, sent from our local Skywarn office this morning:

"..Powerful and long duration coastal storm will bring the potential for multiple high tide cycles of significant coastal flooding to East Coastal Massachusetts along with the potential for strong to damaging winds, including hurricane force wind gusts, for Cape Cod and the Islands; heavy rainfall that could lead to river and stream flooding; and rain changing to snow with the potential now for significant snow accumulations in portions of interior Southern New England. The potential for heavy snow is a change since the last update...

..A High Wind Warning is now in effect from 10 AM Friday to 10 AM Saturday for Cape Cod and the Islands and Norfolk, Bristol and Plymouth Counties of Massachusetts for sustained winds of between 20-50 MPH with gusts to 75 MPH and isolated higher gusts possible. These winds will cause scattered to numerous pockets of tree and wire damage and scattered to numerous power outages..

..A Flood Watch remains in effect for Eastern Massachusetts through Saturday Morning for 1-3 inches of rainfall with isolated higher rainfall amounts of 4". Western portions of the region [including Amherst] were dropped from the Flood Watch as more heavy wet snow is expected in these areas...

..A Winter Storm Watch is now in effect from Late Tonight through Late Friday Night for Western Franklin, Western Hampshire and Western Hampden Counties of Massachusetts for 4-7" of snow.

...A Winter Storm Watch is now in effect from Friday Afternoon through Saturday Morning for Worcester and Northern Middlesex Counties of Massachusetts for 2-6" of snow with isolated higher amounts. The heavy wet snow combined with strong winds could cause pockets of tree and wire damage and power outages. These snow totals could be subject to significant revisions..."

Winterfest Luminaria on the Common

Amherst Winterfest opens with "Luminaria on the Common"
Photography by Amherst Winterfest (please identify!) - 2/3/2018

Love this extraordinary photo of yesterday's Amherst Winterfest opening, with "Luminaria on the Common." For the first time this year, Winterfest is happening for a full week, February 3-10, with events scheduled every day. Check out the schedule here.

Morning Musings on Groundhog Day

Groundhog Day Morning, North Amherst
Photo by S. Vardatira, 2/2/2018

Questions on my mind about our most famous weather forecaster:

• Does Punxsutawney Phil forecast for all of the northern hemisphere, just Pennsylvania, the East Coast, or some other geographic area? Seems to me that his forecast should just pertain to Punxsutawney and not anywhere else.
• Are groundhogs around here even coming out of hibernation yet? This does not strike me as a morning an Amherst groundhog would want to be yanked out of the ground.
• And as a friend just commented, isn't six more weeks until spring essentially an early spring here in the Northeast? Yes!

Finally, for those who have not yet heard the news, Punxsutawney Phil did indeed see his shadow this morning. And it also snowed and got colder. So take that however you wish. It's shocking, I know, but it turns out that Punxsutawney Phil is not that dependable a forecaster.

Happy Groundhog Day!

Morning Dusting of Snow

Featured photo for the month of February in the 2018 Head in the Clouds Amherst wall calendar was taken by friend of HITC and previous calendar contributor, Elisa Campbell. By sheer coincidence, this photo could have been taken this very morning - light snow overnight has turned our world into this exact scene.

Still Point of the Sun

“This is the solstice, the still point

of the sun, its cusp and midnight,

the year’s threshold

and unlocking, where the past

lets go of and becomes the future;

the place of caught breath…”

                            ― Margaret Atwood  

Nightfall at Mount Pollux
Photo by S. Vardatira

Going, going...almost gone!

Highlight of daily entries in Head in the Clouds Amherst wall calendar

(From August 2018)

The calendar entries may not be the first thing people notice when they open our Head in the Clouds Amherst wall calendar (first would be the photos), but we get lots of appreciation after the fact. As in "I really love all historical facts about local weather and Amherst. So many things I never knew!"

We just did our final delivery of calendars to Simple Gifts Farm Store and Hastings, and each place has about half a dozen calendars on hand right now. And we still have about a dozen available for mail order or pick up through our website. And if you place your mail order by the end of Tuesday, December 19, we will send them off to their destination via Priority Mail on Wednesday, December 20^th, with likely delivery before Christmas.

Once our calendars sell out, they are gone for the year. Meaning if you don’t have your own and want to know what happened to the bridge from Northampton to Hadley on June 14, 1877, you’ll have to ply the information from a friend who actually has the calendar.

Enjoy!

Hastings, Simple Gifts, and Capturing Winter

Windswept Farm, Hadley MA
Photo by S. Vardatira
(Calendar photos must feature Amherst, which is why you will
never see this photo in the Head in the Clouds Amherst calendar)

Three extremely pertinent points about the Head in the Clouds Amherst calendar:

1. Hastings has been resupplied with our 2018 calendar - if you went earlier this week and they had run out, try again now. Also, you can find calendars at the Simple Gifts Farm store.

2. And you can always order online for delivery by both mail and local pick up. More information here.

3. Winter photographs are a premium for our annual calendar, so get your cameras ready to capture Amherst in snow (starting tomorrow, of course!). Each year, we receive far fewer submissions of winter photos than any other season. Find interesting lighting to break up those all-too-common winter greyscapes, and check out these tips as well.

And if you take a great winter shot that you'd like us to consider for the 2019 calendar, feel free to send it our way. We will keep it safe (and possibly post with your permission) until photo selection begins for next year.

Wampom and a Large Coat

New England, circa 17th Century

The earliest deed of purchase for the lands now comprising Amherst dates back 359 years to December 1658. With that deed, Major John Pynchon of Springfield purchased the land for "two hundred fathom of wampom, and twenty fathom and one large coat at eight fathom" from the Umpanchla, Quonquont, and Chickwalopp tribes. All three tribes, and "in particular [the] Quonquont" kept "one corn field about twelve, sixteen, or twenty acres of ground, a little above Mattabaget, by the brook called Wunnaquickset, lying on the south side of the said brook, and compassed in by a swamp from that brook to the great river, and also they reserve liberty to hunt deer, fowl, & c. and to take fish, beaver or otter, & c."

With that one corn field excepted, Pynchon and his heirs kept everything else to "forever enjoy absolutely and clearly, free from all incumbrances of any Indians or their corn fields forever...."

At the time, the tract of land covered by the deed included "Towunucksett, Sunmukquommuck, Suchaw, Noycoy, Gassek, Pomptuckset, Mattabaget. Wunnaquickset, Kunckkiunkqualluck, Neposeoneag, and to the south end of the great hill called Kunckquachu." For those seeking to rename all things Amherst, these could provide some interesting alternatives.

John Pynchon should not be confused with his father, William Pynchon, who purchased and developed the land now comprising Springfield (as well as Hampden County and some other areas in eastern Massachusetts). One of William Pynchon's other claims to fame is that he a wrote a book -  The Meritorious Price of Our Redemption - which became, at the hands of the Puritans it criticized, one of the first to be banned and burned on American soil.

A 2015 biography of William Pynchon (John's father) describes him as enjoying "extraordinary and uniquely positive relationships with Native peoples" - significantly, he believed peaceful coexistence was ultimately better for business. But he also seems to have exhibited a genuine interest in tribal customs, trading practices, and ways of resolving disputes. His efforts to maintain positive relationships with local tribes - including refusing to participate in the war against the Pequots - were challenged by incursions and massacres of natives taking place in other parts of New England. We also know that, unlike many others across the area (including his own pastor), William Pynchon never sought to Christianize his Native American neighbors.

I could find no sources indicating to what extent John adopted his father's somewhat more inclusive philosophy. And I can't help but wonder where the "one corn field" mentioned in that 1658 deed happened to be, and how quickly the native tribes lost rights to even that.

Primary Source: Digital Amherst, Indian Deed of Lands

One-of-a-kind Amherst wall calendar available right here!

Click on photo to enlarge - and scroll below for a view of all the months
Actual calendar photos and daily entries are high resolution images

If you are looking for a unique Amherst gift that will keep giving all year round, look no further than our new Head in the Clouds Amherst 2018 Wall Calendar. This year's calendar features:

• 12 beautiful, seasonal photos taken in Amherst, Massachusetts by twelve different local photographers (scroll below for their names). 
• Over 100 daily entries highlighting: 
• Astronomical events visible from Amherst with the naked eye (full moon, new moon, meteor showers, and more!) 
• Anniversaries of catastrophic weather events that occurred in Amherst and New England between 1660 and 2017
• Pivotal dates in Amherst history
• Pivotal dates in the history of meteorology
• Major U.S. holidays
• Major religious holidays

This is that perfect gift for Amherst residents, tourists, college students here and away, writers and poets, nature lovers, and Amherst natives living abroad and longing for a taste of home. This calendar will have them (and you) falling in love with Amherst month after month. Full size when open is 17" high and 11" wide. 

You now have two options for purchasing online: 

1. MAIL ORDER: $19 per calendar, which includes postage and handling. Click on this PayPal button:

Purchase here for delivery by mail:

2. LOCAL PICK UP: $15 per calendar. Click on this PayPal button:
(With this option, you will avoid built-in postage costs by picking up your calendars in North Amherst - directions to the pick-up location will be emailed to you after you complete your purchase).

Purchase here for local pick up:

You can also purchase our calendar at Hastings, located in downtown Amherst at 45 South Pleasant Street on the Common, or Simple Gifts Farm Farm Store, located in North Amherst at 1089 North Pleasant Street. Call before you go over just to make sure they have calendars in stock. We do our best to keep our sellers supplied, but it's not unusual for them to run out several times during a season - if they don't have any, let us know.

For questions or special requests (including arranging for pick up in Amherst), please email Sharon at CloudsAmherst[@]gmail[.]com. 
The [at] and [dot] are done to keep email addresses from being collected by spammers and harvesting robots. You just have to replace them for [@] and [.] when you write your e-mail.

Calendar Cover
Photo by Joshua Wolfsun

Snow Cow
Atkins North, North Amherst ~ Photo by Sharon Vardatira

Looking North from Rattlesnake Knob
Mount Holyoke Range, Amherst ~ Photo by Elisa Campbell

Tenderness at the Duck Pond
UMass Amherst ~ Photo by Ellen Finkelstein

Amherst Light
Town Hall, Amherst ~ Photo by John Snyder

Early Spring Morning at Bramble Hill Farm
Amherst ~ Photo by Meg Wright

Summer Glow
The Old Landfill, Amherst ~ Photo by Meg Rosa

A Thoughtful Heron at Puffer's Dam
Puffer's Pond, North Amherst ~ Photo by Anna-Beth Winograd

Dream
Mount Pollux, South Amherst ~ Photo by Ben Harper

Autumn at Cherry Hill
North Amherst ~ Photo by David Sharken

Autumn Light
Wentworth Farm, Amherst ~ Photo by Mindy Domb

A Foggy Start
South Amherst ~ Photo by James Patten

Quiet Dawn on the Common
Amherst Center ~ Photo by Joshua Wolfsun

Fall on Bridge

Featured photo for November in the 2017 Head in the Clouds Amherst calendar. Photographer Meg Rosa perfectly captures that peculiar fall occurrence around here (especially in recent years), where some leaves can simultaneously be a confetti of color on the ground while others are still green on the trees and underbrush.

The Case for Atlantic Time

Depressed at the prospect of sunset around 4:30 today (courtesy of our going off Daylight Savings Time last night)?  

Well, you are not alone. Last week, our state’s own Special Commission to Study the Commonwealth’s Time Zone issued a final report of findings and recommendations for the Legislature’s consideration. Based on research into what such a time zone change would mean for Massachusetts, the Commission recommended that Massachusetts could absolutely make a "data-driven case for moving to the Atlantic Time Zone (effectively observing year-round daylight saving time)."  If you are wondering why we couldn’t simply stay on Daylight Savings Time year-round (as this would be the simplest fix), federal law only allows states to opt OUT of Daylight Savings Time. So the only way for Massachusetts to effectively adopt Daylight Savings Time year-round would be to move from the Eastern Time Zone to the Atlantic Time Zone and then opt out of Daylight Savings Time.

The report did add that such a change should be contingent on the other New England states (possibly also New York) adopting the same strategy. 

I’m all for this move to Atlantic Time, much as I appreciated my extra hour of sleep last night. The graphic above says it all...

Foliage between clouds

October Weekend, Charlemont MA
Photo by Brittany Sinclair

Friend of Head in the Clouds Amherst, Brittany Sinclair, snapped this beautiful, iconic fall scene from the hammock behind her house in Charlemont MA. Ah, New England!

A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall (tomorrow, actual rain)

Raindrops on Window
Photo by S. Vardatira

A strong cold front will slowly move through New England as we get into the Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday afternoon timeframe. The front will be accompanied by heavy rainfall and the potential for convective showers and even isolated to scattered strong to severe thunderstorms – think strong, potentially damaging winds and heavy rainfall.