ICE is here...

Definitely,

Lots of ice!

In fact it was really hard to sleep as the sharp crack, pop, bang of trees and tree limbs snapped and fell all night long.

Power was already out by 12:00 am.
Still out when I left the Lodge at 9:00 a.m.

Lots of branches, trees, and ice chunks from branches down.
The White pine out front on the Cascades Trail is not so happy this morning.
The smell of the fresh pine pitch is wonderful, and I think we will have boughs for garland.
The ground is clear and largely just very very wet.

So here is where the weather went nuts.....
It was supposed to have warmed as it rained overnight.
It didn't.

Each time I was up wandering and looking around in the oil lamp and candle lit Lodge the temp. registered as just over 32 degrees by fractions, but never more than that, allowing the ice to build and build, while the rain made every square centimeter of branch heavier and heavier, CRACK!

It is beautiful out there, though the warming is shifting the ice load and trees are still going as well as limbs. Not a great time to go for a hike unless you relish imminent danger. The trailhead and parking area are clear, but there are no promises on the trail itself other than downed limbs aplenty. Wind was supposedly in the forecast for later this morning.....

DON'T TRY CATARACT STREET!
It is impassible!
Power lines down on the street.
Trees down across the street.

The Cascades themselves are ROARING!
Continuous ribbons of white frothy flow.

The Cascades Brook is the highest we have had since Jason the Hydrological Ranger installed the stream gauge, a full 1 foot, 2" and surging up and down by 0.4" by the second.
The second channel is in full flow, there is back water pooling on portions of the brook, and there are standing pools of water by the parking area.

As of just shy of 9 a.m. the readings were:

Barometric Pressure is 29.21" and falling;
Temperature is 33.1 degrees F and steady;
Humidity of 98% and steady;
Rain yesterday was 0.71" (and that was basically last night before midnight);
Rain from midnight until roughly 9 a.m. was 1.34";
For a total rainfall of 2.05" (which is a heck of a storm! by itself)

Pictures will follow as power is restored to the Lodge.

Enjoy!
Storms like this come but once a decade!