ELDERBERRIES and blackberries fully ripe on the first day of August. Was that normal? No,

but we shouldn’t have been surprised, as the seasons seem to have been running a month early all year.

And the way in which August began suggested an early autumn, too. Although August 1 saw showers in our area, Wellington itself it remained dry and pleasantly warm at 22C (72F), but the following week was a real disappointment for anyone holidaying around here.

August 2 was wet and windy until late in the day, the following two days being cool with further showers. August 5 started with a sharp shower accompanied by thunder, before things cleared to give a sunny if rather cool day. August 7 was dull and damp with a lurid sunset, the next day starting fair but spoiled by torrential showers that gave a total of 18mm (0.7in) of rain in Wellington. August 9 began wet and cold, before sunny spells in the afternoon edged the temperature up to 17C (63F) – our lowest maximum in the month.

Although the forecast hinted at slightly better things to come, the weather stayed changeable and on the cool side. Increased amounts of sunshine raised daytime temperatures closer to what we expect in mid-August but clear skies led to several quite chilly nights. The average temperature for the first half of the month was more than a degree below normal, with no day warmer than August 1.

The third week cheered us up a bit, being the sunniest spell since mid-June, but most days seem to end with a flurry of heavy showers. Two-thirds of the way through August, and still only five completely dry days: was it to be one of those summer months that are best forgotten? At least the nights had generally been warmer.

Then a subtle shift of wind direction overnight on August 20-21 introduced air of tropical origin, at last. A muggy night was followed by a day of broken sunshine that saw temperatures in Wellington exceed 25C (77F) for the first time in four weeks, with a repeat performance the following day.

The warmth didn’t last. August 23 was much cooler and rather dull, leaving one wondering if summer was indeed now over. Enter ex-hurricane Gert, a godsend – particularly to some in our region’s broadcast media who had such fun with the name! This active weather system caused a slight deflection in the course of the North Atlantic jetstream. That in turn allowed dry, warm air to flood across the UK, daytime maxima increasing steadily over the holiday weekend.

A temperature of 26.7C (80F) on August 28 was the highest late-August reading in Wellington for more than a quarter of a century. After that, perhaps we should overlook the cool, showery end to the month.

In summary, it was a better month than some in the media have asserted. Thanks to the last-minute warmth, August’s mean temperature of 16.4C (61.5F) was almost exactly average, as was the total rainfall of 68mm (2.7in).

Add to that normal amounts of sunshine, and you get one of those rare months that is ‘average’ in all respects. In our region, the last month to have that distinction was July 2005.

Simon Ratsey

(WWN weather correspondent)