Find out what the Old Farmer's Almanac says the fall has in store for Lower Hudson Valley
As we sweat through July, the Old Farmer’s Almanac predicts autumn will bring cooler-than-average temperatures to at least a chunk of Lower Hudson Valley.
Autumn precipitation is predicted to be near average in our region, while the rest of the state and through northern New England are eyed for below average, a summary of the almanac says.
The summary said average temperatures and below-average rainfall "could translate to some pretty foliage in the Northeastern region'' — so, that could mean leaf peeping will be at its best a bit north of the Lower Hudson Valley.
Most of New York state is predicted to be near its average fall temperatures, but a southern sliver is marked for below average, a summary says. The annual almanac places that sliver (the map isn't precise about which counties/towns are included) in the Atlantic Corridor, which includes below-average temps for all of New Jersey and south of there, as well as most of Connecticut, all of Rhode Island and roughly half of Massachusetts.
The below-average-temperature sliver appears to include Westchester, Rockland, perhaps Putnam, as well as New York City and Long Island. And that might prove to be cold comfort.
That’s because the almanac “is predicting a warmer-than-normal autumn this year” overall, with the map showing the entire western U.S. blanketed in red — meaning above-average temperatures everywhere there, a news release says, adding: "Your trek to the pumpkin patch may be a bit steamy this year!"
The Old Farmer's Almanac releases a new edition annually by September. It says its forecasts are based on climatology, meteorology, and solar science. Robert B. Thomas, a Massachusetts school teacher and bookseller, started the almanac in 1792, while George Washington was in his first presidential term. Thomas’s annual pamphlet aimed to assist farmers for the optimal times to plant things, and he had a formula that used astronomical calculations to predict weather patterns.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: A Lower Hudson cooler-than-average fall? What Old Farmer's Almanac says
