It’s been a long hot summer, but the Cooler weather is finally here!!
in June, July, August, and September Key West is Hot. Big surprise, I know. We are, after all in the Tropics, so it should be no surprise. What does surprise people is how hot it feels in Key West. Because of the waters surrounding us, the temperature in Key West has never hit 100 degrees, but the “heat index” can be over 110 for weeks. Especially in Late July – September. That is when the “Big Heat” is at its hottest!
Humidity plays a big factor when it comes to The Heat Index.
And, if there is one thing we’ve got in Key West in the Summer, it’s humidity!! It makes the temperature feel much hotter than the air temperature. Temperatures in the Mid to upper 90s are not uncommon in those months and unfortunately, due to the surrounding waters, it only cools down to the mid-80s at night. The water temperature near–shore is usually about 85 degrees, so the air won’t get any cooler. If you get up at 4 AM, it is still 85 degrees outside and still very humid. Basically, if you are outside, you are sweating.
The sun is also much hotter than most people expect.
I know the sun is hot in the summer in other places, especially mid-day, but in most places as the day gets later the intensity of the sun begins to fade. Not so here. Even just before sunset, the sun’s rays are hot!! until the sun dips below the horizon, you feel the heat. Heck, even after the son does set, it’s still going to be in the Mid-80s at best. Not exactly chilly!!
Just as folks up north look forward to that first warm day of Spring
Down here, we look forward to the first cold front of fall!! The Humidity drops, and we start to get Temperatures in the 70’s during the day and even the 60’s at night. It feels wonderful!! We can actually work in the yard without being soaked with sweat in the first 10 minutes. I know we don’t get any sympathy from most folks up north. After all most of us moved here for the warm weather. But after over 40 years, it does start to wear on a body.
Last week we had the 1st cold front of the year push through
It got here just in time too. Not only does the cold front make it more pleasant, but it can save us from Hurricanes too! A cold front is a high-pressure system and a Hurricane is a low-pressure system. When the 2 meet, The high-pressure system wins. Last week, a low-pressure system, which eventually became Hurricane Oscar, was chugging across the Atlantic toward Key West. It bumped into the high pressure coming across Florida and that turned the storm to the North East and away from land
Timing is everything!
Because if a storm goes past the Florida peninsula and out into the Gulf of Mexico and then bumps into a High Pressure, that can turn it back into us. That happened with Hurricane Wilma in 2005 and Hurricane Irma in 2017. Both caused seriuos damage to Florida and the Keys. So at the end of Hurricane Season, it is important for the cold fronts to get here first. Once we get in to November, we are pretty much out of danger. I don’t think I have seen a hurricane in November in the 43+ years I have lived here and I hope I never do. I guess only time will tell, but now, I’m really enjoying the chilly 80′ weather during the day and 78′ at night. t’s all what you are used to and I’m looking forward to getting used to this for the next few months!!