Lots Of New England November Heat Records But Reality To Set In Soon

People in Burlington, Vermont enjoy pleasant
outdoor dining amid record warmth Saturday. 

 Around 3 or 4 a.m. this morning, I awoke to find myself in a stuffy bedroom. It felt like the heat was on. And I could hear the dull, slight roar of the forced air heat flowing in. 

"Why would my husband turn on the heat on such a warm night," a groggily wondered. Then I realized. 

The husband of course didn't touch the heat. It was off. The problem was it was the warmest and arguably one of the most humid November pre-dawns on record.  In nearby Burlington, it was still 69 degrees at 4 a.m. That's above normal for that hour in July, never mind November!

That slight roar I  heard wasn't the forced air heat. It was the trees outside bending and protesting against the 40 mph gusts. 

By the way, my St. Albans, Vermont household has set some sort of record. I'm a wimp when it comes to a cold house, but we haven't turned the heat on once yet this autumn, much later than in other years. It's been that warm. 

Unfortunately, the heat will have to come on sooner rather than later. More on that in a moment. 

Sunday and this morning are the pinnacle of this warm stretch of weather that began in the third week of October.

All kinds of records were broken Saturday: A sampling: 

Tonks the weather dog rests near the open deck doors
during record warmth Sunday morning at our place
in St. Albans, Vermont. Gusty winds blew in leaves, so 
I guess I'll have to rake the living room floor. 

The low temperature in Burlington Saturday was 60 degrees.  That ties the record for the warmest overnight low for the entire month of November. 

If it stays at or above 61 degrees until midnight tonight, we'll have the warmest "low" of any November day since at least the 1880s.  Current forecasts do hold the temperature in the low 60s until at least midnight tonight. 

The high temperature Saturday in Burlington was 74 degrees, beating the old record by two degrees. That 74 was tied for the second warmest November day on record. 

Montpelier on Saturday had a record high of 74 degrees. St. Johnsbury set a new record high of 72 degrees. Plattsburgh, New York reached a record high of 71 degrees.

Springfield, Vermont and Lebanon, New Hampshire both reached a whopping 78 degrees. I don't know for sure whether those are record highs, but they probably are. 

Portland, Maine reached 75 degrees it's hottest temperature for any November day on record. Caribou, Maine, with a reading of 73 degrees, also broke its all time November high. 

This morning's warmth is also wild for how widespread it is across Vermont. Usually in this weather set up, the Champlain Valley is quite warm, but the rest of the state is much cooler early in the morning. This Sunday morning, dawn broke with temperatures in the 60s to around 70 statewide.

The notorious cold spot of Island Pond was at 64 degrees. The usually even colder Saranac Lake, New York was 65 degrees. Truly bonkers weather. 

A sign of things to come?  Forecasters have all of the 
Lower 48 except the southern tip of Florida to be 
colder than average in their latest 8 to 14 day forecast 
which covers November 13-19.

 It's so warm this morning we left the doors to the deck wide open to let the dogs out and a breeze in.  Unfortunately, this move also allowed a lot of leaves to blow into the house, and now I have to rake the living room and kitchen floors. 

 More record highs are likely in a few areas as a cold front slowly edges toward us, and ultimately makes it way through late tonight.

We won't see any really chilly air immediately, as the cold is lagging far behind the front. You won't really feel it in earnest until Tuesday, when high temperatures will only reach the 40s.  As I said yesterday, that will feel shocking, but such weather is perfectly normal for this time of year. 

That brief chill on Tuesday will quickly be replaced by milder weather during the middle or end of next week. But it wont be nearly as warm as it has been this weekend.

Plus, that Tuesday chill is a taste of a coming pattern change that will finally - sorry I have to say this - bring wintry weather to us in about a week or eight days or so. This won't be hard core winter weather by any means. 

But get your fall outdoor chores done this week. At least a little snow, and some consistent freezing temperatures are on the way. At least the ski areas will finally have a chance to gear up for the season and start making snow.