Winter seems pretty far away when you’re sweltering and slapping mosquitos on a muggy August afternoon. However, the Farmers’ Almanac is looking ahead to the cold months. And its extended weather forecast predicts a “polar coaster” of frigid temperatures and “copious” amounts of snow, sleet, rain, and ice.
To arrive at this frosty foreboding conclusion, the almanac plugs in a proprietary formula that’s been around since 1818. It’s famously guarded by a prognosticator who goes by the pseudonym of Caleb Weatherbee, who considers sunspot activity, tidal action of the moon, the position of the planets, and a variety of other factors to come up with the prediction. (The validity of the almanac’s predictions have been frequently called into question.)
Other ways to guess at what the weather may have in store are steeped in folklore. Country Living pointed to several possible signs in nature. Here are some of the quirkier signs they say to look out for this fall to predict how harsh the winter will be:
- Thicker-than-normal corn husks
- Woodpeckers sharing a tree
- Early departure of geese and ducks
- Early migration of the monarch butterfly
- Thick hair on the nape of a cow’s neck
- Heavy and numerous fogs during August
- Raccoons with thick tails and bright bands
- Mice chewing furiously to get into your home
- Early arrival of crickets on the hearth
- Spiders spinning larger-than-usual webs and entering the house in great numbers
- Pigs gathering sticks
- Ants marching in a line rather than meandering
- Unusual abundance of acorns
- Squirrels gathering nuts early to fortify against a hard winter
- Frequent halos or rings around the sun or moon forecast numerous snowfalls
This post has been updated.
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