LIQUID SUNSHINE

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ... 23RD OCTOBER 2011 ... 2130 BST


All eyes are to the east as a Depression approaches the eastern Caribbean.

There is a small chance of development of this system but that is more likely when the Depression gets into the Caribbean Sea.

Arrival is expected within 48 hours from now and it looks like the depression will track just to the north of Tobago, however the area of heavy rain and the risk of strong winds could be spread over a much wider area.

Expect heavy rain and squally conditions in Tobago by Tuesday.

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ... 29TH NOVEMBER 2011 ... 0930 BST

The rains have eased for Trinidad and Tobago for the time being but the general situation looks like a wet season should.

The Monsoon season is in full swing over Africa and there are pulses of moisture being pumped into the Atlantic which eventually arrive in the Caribbean. 2 such pulses are on their way now.

So the general routine this week looks like a couple of fine days with the occasional shower followed by a couple of wetter days with rainfall probably falling more during the night.

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ...13TH NOVEMBER 2011 ... 1615 GMT

The general weather conditions seem to be settling into the Dry Season mode with steady trade winds and no significant threats of rain or storms.

Typically, this brings sunshine and showers with most of the rainfall at night but occasionally there is a day or 2 of more persistent rain.

The wet/hurricane season comes to a close at the end of this month ... it has been an active season but there has been little of note, particularly in the Caribbean.

Hurricanes are basically sea temperature conditioning systems and the lack of this activity could be an indicator of a slightly wetter dry season with higher sea temperatures from now until next June 2012.

We will see ...

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ... 21ST NOVEMBER 2011 ... 0945 GMT

A slight disturbance has developed in the Atlantic and appeared to threaten the Caribbean but this has moved north and much of the rainfall has dissipated ... had anything developed it would have been a very late one as we are now just over a week away from the official end of the wet season.

The shower activity has been increasing over Tobago and the south east Caribbean and this looks like being the case until around Tuesday when the strong trades should decrease.

The rest of the week looks promising.

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

MIDWEEK UPDATE ... 23rd NOVEMBER 2011 ... 2350 GMT

The increased shower activity has continued across the south east Caribbean ... I have seen reports of flooding in Trinidad and I guess this weather has been somewhat frustrating for holidaymakers over the last week.

A fresh trough of showers is moving in to affect T&T over the next 24 - 48 hours so it gets no better until Friday/Saturday.

It is still wet season (officially) ... so I guess we best wait until 1st December before the wet-dry season sets in

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ... 28TH NOVEMBER 2011 ... 1530 GMT

The rather wet period for the south eastern Caribbean, including Trinidad & Tobago should come to a close by the end of this week.

Currently a trough extends north-south across the Leewards right up into the central Atlantic. A depression is expected to form from this trough later this week but this should be well away to the north east.

The southern end of this trough is rather weak so Tobago is getting occasional showers while heavier and more persistent rain falls over the islands further north.

It is a little 'hit and miss' for Tobago this week but once this trough is out of the way the weather should settle down to the seasonal sunshine and showers.

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ... 4TH DECEMBER 2011 ... 1815 GMT

It is now the dry season and it still rains in many parts of the eastern Caribbean.

The same trough I was reporting on a week ago is still there but Tobago is now getting less rain from it.

This trough will hang around for a few more days and dissipate slowly northwards ... a strong surge of trade winds are ready to takeover later this week ... fresher weather, keen seas ...

... the dry season is coming, better late than never.

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ... 12TH DECEMBER 2011 ... 1515 BST


This is my last posting for 2011 as I will be away on a volcanic island somewhere in the middle of the Atlantic until the 31st December. I have doubts about my internet access over this period.

At least I can say that the dry season has arrived, albeit a few days later than I predicted last week.

So, apart from the occasional rainy day, the weather should settle down to a steady regime of sunshine and showers.

No sooner than I return from from my volcanic break, it will be 4 weeks prep before I go out to Tobago myself and I am absolutely certain that the weather will be fantastic throughtout February

I hope everyone has a good lay off over Christmas and I will defer my Global New Years optimism until 2013 !!

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

INTERIM UPDATE ... 4TH JANUARY 2012 ... 2000 GMT

A Happy New Year ...

Apart from showers last weekend and some very heavy seas in recent days it looks like Tobago is shaping up nicely for a good Dry Season.

The Sat loops look clear across the whole Caribbean ... perfect weather.

There will always be the occasional shower ... but it is looking very sunny and mooney, especially from the 2nd February right through until the 25th

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ... 9TH JANUARY 2012 ... 0930 GMT

The trades have slowed down in the far south east Caribbean and this is allowing some moisture to rise up from the South American mainland.

So it is looking a little cloudy around Tobago and there is a possibility of a little rain here and there.

The trades start to increase later this week and this should blow all the groggy stuff away and bring back more sunshine and the usual trades showers.

The sea swells also look set to increase and peak towards the end of next weekend ... 2 metres, may 3 ... could be good for the surfers.

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ... 14TH JANUARY 2012 ... 0900 GMT

As expected, the trade winds have increased in strength and this is bringing some heavy seas to most of the Caribbean.

The sea swells will peak around Tobago over the next few days and then reduce gradually towards the end of the week.

Otherwise it is sunshine and showers.

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ... 21ST JANUARY 2012 ... 1130 GMT

The Dry season has really set in with very quiet weather across the whole Caribbean ... I would expect this to last at least the week.

The seas will stay moderate and possibly calm later this week with a slight hint of it picking up a little towards the end of next weekend.

Currently there is a niggling area of heavy showers to the east of Tobago but this looks like dissipating and only a few light showers are likely to arise over Tobago from this.

My focus is currently on the weather models over the next 2 weeks for Europe and the UK ... there is a hint of much colder and snowy weather for early February, particularly for Europe ... this could disrupt travel so I will be keeping an eye on it.

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ... 28TH JANUARY 2012 ... 0830 GMT

Strong trade winds have brought quite a few showers to the southern Caribbean over the last week and this is likely to continue for a few days and gradually ease off towards the end of this week.

So ... it could be quite showery this weekend in Tobago and the showery activity will slowly reduce through the week. There will also be plenty of sun between the showers. The seas will also be quite heavy but next weekend looks a little calmer although the trades could pick the sea up again the following week (it's very common to have strong trade winds and choppy seas at this time of year).

Cold weather is setting in over Europe and the UK and, although this week looks OK there is an increasing risk that warm air trying to move in off the Atlantic could set off some snowfall in some areas and disrupt air travel ... this risk increases after next weekend.

... why would I care? ... I will be in Tobago on Thursday

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE FROM CASTARA ... 4TH FEBRUARY 2012 ... 1200 GMT

Lovely weather here ... a few showers here and there ... expecting it to continue.

No so good for the UK ... Snow!

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

UPDATE FROM CASTARA ... 11TH FEBRUARY 2012 ... 2045 GMT


A blissful week of weather last week with sporadic showers and some rainfall during the night.

The sea became very heavy in the early part of the week but it is now calm and the silt is clearing to provide good snorkelling conditions over the next week.

This fine weather will continue into next week.

Right, now I am off to strangle that Ice Cream Man or at least convince him that he needs a better set of jingles before he gets mobbed and publicly flogged !!

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE FROM CASTARA ... 18TH FEBRUARY 2012 ... 1200 GMT

The weather has been lovely apart from a couple of rainy days on Tuesday and Wednesday last week.

It still rains at night but it is mostly sunny during the days.

One regular annoyance is the formation of the cloud bar that hovers over the Crown Point area and this restricts the sunshine in this area particularly in the afternoons. The answer to that is to stay to the northern half of Tobago if you want blistering sunshine all day.

This week looks like being very sunny, as usual, with most rain falling at night. The sea is moderate and there seems to be sufficient saharan dust in the atmosphere to keep the fine weather going.

Right, I am off for a boat trip today. Conditions have been great for snorkelling, the best I have seen in years.

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ... 4TH MARCH 2012 ... 1500 GMT

The rainy weather over the last week is clearing ... in fact it is already starting to look sunny although there is some cloudiness still hanging around in the south east Caribbean.

Over the next week it's looking normal for this time of year with just trade showers and the possibility of moderate to heavy seas building towards midweek.

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ... 14TH MARCH 2012 ... 0845 GMT

It's raining and it is likely to do so for the next 2 days as scattered showers will be in the area thanks to a trough extending from northern Venezuela north eastwards right out into the central Atlantic.

Apart from this trough the Caribbean is normal so I would expect the normal weather pattern of sunshine and showers to return by Wednesday.

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ... 20TH MARCH 2012 ... 0800 GMT

Gosh I am so busy but I will eventually post some reviews of my last trip in February.

Anyway, the weather is not too good in Tobago this week ... it started deteriorating over the weekend and now there is a broad swathe of wet weather stretching from Venezuela, through the eastern Caribbean and way out into the Atlantic.

So periods of heavy rain both day and night this week and it may take a while to budge as low pressure sitting over South America pumps more moisture northwards.

Expect localised flooding, particularly in Trinidad.

Regards

[Paul Tallet]

WEEKLY UPDATE ... 26TH MARCH 2012 ... 1145 BST

The wet conditions I described last week are continuing as low pressure over Venezuela pumps moisture across the southern Caribbean.

The rainfall over Tobago has eased off a little in recent days but there could be further spells of rainfall this week.

Otherwise there will also be some sunshine but I sense that there will be more in the way of cloud.

Regards