[Rockhounds] Accommodations

[Tim Fisher]

It's a well known phenomenon called katabatic winds. They are caused 
by air blowing down the sides of the canyon as the highlands cool at 
dusk, and vice versa at dawn, and I have seen both up- and 
down-canyon katabatic winds around dusk and dawn, especially when it 
is much hotter in the canyon and there is no wind. They are always 
upslope (relative to the canyon sides) in the morning and downslope 
in the evening. They can be of very short duration in the Deschutes 
canyon in Oregon; I have seen them last about 3 minutes or so, knock 
a few tents over then they are gone :)

At 01:18 PM 11/30/2007, you wrote:


>Hi, Jeanette & Glenn --
>Enjoyed your Zion story (being a Zion person myself!) -- I'm not surprised
>about the wind -- but I'm surprised you didn't also get it in the evening.
>What happens is the old phenomenon of warm air rising. Being a canyon, it is
>particularly pronounced. So (especially in the hot weather in summer)
>starting in late afternoon the warm air "rises" by blowing up-canyon.
>During the night, as the air cools, the cool air (being heavier) "sinks" by
>moving down-canyon underneath the warmer air. It dies down about the time
>the sun gets down into the bottom of the canyon.
>However; Your description of a short blast sounds like something totally
>different, that I have never experienced here, myself. But I do remember
>that once, in Australia (during our Great Australian Rockhounds Runabout),
>we were camped (south of the Rabbit Fence), and we had a wind that seems to
>have been just like what you described. They saw it coming and told us to
>get into our tents so the tents wouldn't blow away.
>Anyhow, glad you enjoyed your night in Zion -- at least most of it!
>We do have some gorgeous sunrises and sunsets!
>
>Margaret
>

Tim Fisher
Ore-ROCK-On!
Email address at http://OreRockOn.com