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jokmmrrt 1,140 inches
snow accumulitec)
on Washington’s Mount
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(Continued from page 7)
Summer visitors nxstly drive through and get out of' their car to
take a quick picture, but those who live and work in the park are
more affected. Bakiino says those who work outside, such as main
tenance crews at the pork and hotel, typically start their day at 6
a.m. so they can take off by 2 p.m. to avoid some of the scotching
afternoon sun.
“Some folks really adapt to the heat well. They run inside and
get their down coats when it drops below 90 degrees," he jokes.
The payoff is great winter weather, with mid-60s in December
and January, while November and March typically have highs in tire
70s and 80s, Bakiino says.
Beskles holding the nations retold high temperature, Death
Valley is the driest place, too. It holds the recotd for the least sea
sonal precipitation, zero inches in 1929, as well as having an average
annual rainfall of just 1.96 indies a year.
Compare that with the 43 inches of rain that Alvin, Texas, re
ceived in 24 hours. Tommy Peebles clearly recalls that torrential
downpour and the sound of water lapping against the front steps
of his parents’ home.
“It sounded like you were sitting on a pier," the city clerk says of
the record-setting rainfall on July 25 and 26,1979 —the most rain
ever recorded in a 24-hour period in die United States. The deluge,
brought by Tropical Storm Claudette, flooded the town of 21,413.
The wake from boats being used to evacuate residents trapped by
the rising waters made the sound Peebles remembers.
“It’s one of those things that you think, what a way to get in
the recotd books," Peebles says. No one died, but
four or five homes had some water damage, and
livestock and crops were destroyed.
Cold, not rain, is the dominant weather
factor in the frozen Last Frontier. With an
average annual temperature of 10.4 degrees,
Barrow, Alaska (pop. 4,581), holds the record for
the nation's coldest city.
"People in Barrow watch a lot of videos in the
winter," says Brian Watson, manager of King Eider
ma*
4
FOGGY CAPE
DISAPPOINTMENT
SX.W fit gm r, jl. .^
oaysj oi tog eacfi fear,
Washington’s Cape Dis
appointment is reported
to be the nation’s foggi
est spot at sea level.
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Inn, a 19-room hotel in the nations
northernmost city. Some people
hunt or snowshoe, and tourists
come to look for polar bears or see
the northern fights, Watson says.
Residents are accustomed to die
oukl and really don’t even dress
all that warmly, because they are
usually just outside to get from
tire car to a building, lie says.
SUN, CLOUDS AND SNOW
While the arc tic cold keeps some people indoors, folks in Yuma,
Ariz. (pop 77,515), are often oudoocs, basking in the warmth of the
nation’s sunniest city, which enjoys 90 percent sunny days.
“You can play golf every day,” says Earl McMullen, assistant
manager and golfpro at the Mesa del Sol couise in Yuma. ‘Toucan
plan to golf six months from now, and it’ll be a sunny day.”
Meanwhile, sunshine is in short supply along the Pacific North
west coast. In fact, Astoria, Ore, (pop. 9,813) and QuiUayute,
Wash., with an average of 239 cloudy days each year, are the cloud
iest spots in the contiguous United States,
Washington state also has experienced record snowfall Residents
of Glacier. Wash, (pop 90), enjoyed great skiing during the winter of
1998-1999 when 1,140 inches of snow fell on nearby Mount Baker—
the most seasonal snowfall ever recorded in die United States.
“We knew something special was going
on. It just kept snowing on the mountain,' says
Torn Dedari, owner of Milano’s restaurant in
Glacier, the closest town to Mount Baker.
In fact, Mount Baker Ski Area closed a
couple of times when the snow gqt as high
as the lifts, he says, Locals carried chainsaws
in their cars so they could clear a pith when
trees weighed down by snow fell across the
road, he says.
KIKG BIPfcR INTN3
• ■ Tm??* —***?
_ «oH,
HHBtT.'f t *
Brian Watson weathers subzero
temperatures in Barrow, Alaska,
the nation’s coldest city.
HH* I V. -■■
.*F
California’s Death
Valley National Park
receives less thart 2
inches of rain a year.
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