I can understand how, if there is any Easterly in the wind, that it gets channeled down through the Dovey Valley, adding a good 10 knots to the wind speed. I also understand (and quite like) the katabatic wind we get in the winter, which acts in the opposite way to a summer sea-breeze thanks to the cold mountain air, warm (relatively) sea temps producing temperature differences of around 10-15 degrees C, and once again the channelling effect of the valley. This often produces 25 knot winds in the estuary when elsewhere is dead still.
BUT, what was going on this morning. From about 5am here there was a proper 20 knot Westerly wind blowing. I thought it was strange as the forecasts had said SE Force 3 for the morning, and indeed when I checked the data from the nearest weather bouys and stations at 7am, Aberporth was reading 10 knots SE and Valley 8 knots SE... It was still howling Westerly here...
So I thought it must have been because the stations are quite a distance from here and what with the hour lag or so, maybe they just hadn't started to get the wind yet..
BUT, at around 8am I then drove to work...within about a mile of Ynyslas, guess what... the wind was about 10 knots and SE. How can we explain that one. Everywhere else in Cardigan Bay and the rest of Wales seemed to be getting 10 knot SE winds whereas here in Ynyslas it was blowing 20 knots plus Westerly???
If I had been anywhere else and someone at Ynyslas had told me it was that windy from the West I wouldn't have believed them. I still hardly believe it myself, but it WAS happening and I have no explanation whatsoever for it.
Any suggestions??
Al.
P.S. Looks as though the forecast NW has just kicked in, so I might just HAVE to go to the beach!
