This is Rural Way's tenth January in southern Utah. It has been cold. In fact, since we've been keeping track, January 2013 is the coldest on record. Granted, it has only been ten years, but I think the month will also count as one of the five coldest since statehood. The graph (above) says it all. On just one day (the 10th) has the temperature reached its normal average. For the other 17, the temperature has been below normal. In some cases, far below normal. On Monday, the 14th, it was minus 22F in the Parowan Valley. That is the kind of cold I might expect if I lived in the "M" states (Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana), but it is shocking to a Utahn.
As we have noted frequently in other posts, The Homestead is not particularly well insulated. When it is 22 below zero outside, it can be in the twenties (above) in the house. That is just brutal. Even for me. Plus, our pipes freeze. It gets so that the fridge is a place we put stuff that we need to keep warm. In order to combat the cold, I've been throwing an unprecedented amount of gas, electricity, and wood at the problem. We've burned virtually all of our January wood already, and I can guarantee that we will have our all time highest energy bill (lifetime) by the end of the month. I've had to leave multiple heaters going all through the night to ensure running water in the house. As my reader knows, Rural Ways generally likes winter, but I'm not sure that I can afford it this time.
McCold could be one of those "M" towns, but for the last week it's been warmer here than in Boise. Still too chilly for a run, but okay for a ski around the park.
ReplyDeleteYeah, with the strong afternoon sun, a daily ski outing is just the thing. But, at about four in the morning, the world is frozen solid. I would think that McCall is generally worse than Parowan, but we may have had a couple of days this past week that, um, topped yours.
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