On November 30, 2011 local weather stations indicated that wind speeds did not drop below 120 miles per hour (mph) for three hours, and that gusts exceeding 180 mph battered the top of Mammoth Mountain. Usually high winds blow from the west in the Sierra, but this windstorm blew steadily from the north, uprooting trees that have adapted to withstand westerly winds, not northerly winds. If you visit the Sierra this summer you’ll likely notice the fallen trees; keep a lookout for them.
Sierra Azul RAWS (remote automated weather station) monitored by National Weather Service. 1842 feet elevation behind Los Gatos
Yesterday morning through midday
28 13:32 S 24 G 53 52 51 100 2.62 54 24.8
28 12:32 S 35 G 74 52 51 100 2.62 53 25.6
28 11:32 S 40 G 72 52 51 99 2.57 52 25.8
28 10:32 S 26 G 53 53 51 95 2.40 53 25.6
28 9:32 SSE 27 G 53 53 49 89 2.29 52 25.6
28 8:32 SSE 30 G 45 52 48 88 2.24 50 25.3
28 7:32 SSE 20 G 49 52 47 84 2.14 50 22.2
28 6:32 SSE 22 G 43 50 46 89 2.14 49 21
28 5:32 S 16 G 46 52 45 77 2.13 51 16.2
28 4:32 S 28 G 46 52 44 75 2.13 51 15.3
28 3:32 S 24 G 40 52 43 73 2.13 52 15.6 http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/sto/getRaws.php?sid=LSGC1&num=48
11:32 Steady 35 - 40 mph, gusting 74
I was on Ben Lomond ridge at that time. It felt to me like 60 knots (69 mph) which is hurricane force. So I guess I'm pretty well calibrated.
Right now I'm at home about 5 miles away as the tumbleweed flies and 1000 feet higher, on a ridge exposed to the Southwest.
last readings from Sierra Azul
29 17:32 S 30 G 55 54 53 100 2.83 54 26.1
29 16:32 S 31 G 53 54 53 100 2.80 54 26
29 15:32 S 24 G 55 54 53 100 2.77 54 26
29 14:32 S 30 G 55 53 52 100 2.76 53 25.9
29 13:32 S 16 G 51 53 52 97 2.69 54 25.7
Gusting 55 mph. Easy enough to walk in it if you bend to the breeze.
Gusted 61mph while I was writing this.
And I've felt MUCH stronger winds here at home.
I've commonly sailed in steady 30 knot (35 mph) winds and occasionally in gusting 50 knots (over 55 mph). as measured by the anenometer on my 30ft sailboat.
Kept my arse inside the house where I was staying a month ago tomorrow in Hurricane Sandy with local winds reported at 60 knots. Not because the wind would knock me over (which it wouldn't) but because of the falling trees, which there were.
Been knocked off my feet on the summit of Mt Rainier.
No doubt a person can travel in 80+mph winds and gusts ..and yeah it can be a fun.. had a good time one night after work on Mt Rose in conditions like you describe..
But they will knock you on your ass or 20 feet away pretty easy if you misjudge em lol
gawd. if i hear one more 'hurricane force' term used on any BS TR just one more time, i'm going to flip out. seems like there's a been a huge amount of hyperbole and exaggeration of wind speed, route ratings, penis size, and everything else over the past few years...wait...i MAY be getting old...sh*t
Having crawled (slowly) into 90+ mph winds on Mt Washington a few times on purpose I totally agree... People have no f'ing idea how scary real wind is. On one trip a friend (~200 pounds) got his chest a wee bit too far off the ground and was lifted right off the ground and blown about 25' backwards, luckily onto a breakable crust downslope. Right next to me too... Was like watching God just pluck him off the Earth.
G Davis you have no clue about wind. Come to my hood when the "scary Devil wind " comes. You won't care about numbers, you'l just hope that nothing gets broken. Have had campers blown over, (now bolted to concret slab with chains), tables blown off decks landing on cars, and every type of ball,toy trash can, etc in the yard after the wind. MY neighbor had a trampoline fly into his house,rip-off the trim and all the vinyl siding was stripped from the side of his house. Welcome to Hilton crk. :)
The microbursts during monsoon season when I lived in Phoenix were pretty impressive. And seemingly random, like skip lesions in the colon of a Crohn's patient. Those winds must have been coming down at 11mph to even 12 mph or more to tear down the roofs, knock over cinder block fences, and scatter trees like kindling.
Oh don't you fellas worry I'm a super pussy in weather, lol! I've bailed off off a 5.6 with my mom cuz A cloud, not several but a teeny one a lil ways away. I'm pretty sure a strong wind gust a while back put me back in puberty.
Never meant to say that I know anything about wind, sh#t I'm completely ignorant on what numbers mean what and feel like what.
Harshest winds were on Baldy in Feb about 2011, could hardly stand up and got kinda scared (again, I'm a pussy)so sorta crawled to the summy stood for a photo braced against a bunch of old day hikers that were psyched then crawled back to where I found a new kind of face-first glissade technique. Hurts on wind-hard ice but its super safe i think.
Let us know!