It’s MONSOON Season at Great Salt Lake.

What is MONSOON season?  Monsoonal season in Utah usually starts mid-June and lasts through late August.  This year, Monsoonal season is getting a late start but be aware!

Monsoonal season brings late afternoon through late evening thunderstorms.  As we all know, thunderstorms can be violent, short-lived weather disturbances.  The day begins looking clear, beautiful and inviting for an afternoon sail.  But, unseen at the time, is air from the Great Salt Lake being pulled in off the lake and up the mountains as the mountains heat up causing rising air to react with moist air aloft.  This is a perfect mixture for the formation of cumulonimbus clouds.  And then the excitement begins!  Strong, gusty winds; microbursts; heavy dense waves; lightning; heavy rain.  And don’t forget about a negative storm surge (dropping lake levels) at the marina mouth.  Not a great sailing experience anymore.

What does this mean for Great Salt Lake?  National Weather Service is predicting the Monsoonal surge will arrive tomorrow.  Pay close attention to weather forecasts.  And don’t pay attention to just one.  If you are planning a day on the lake pay close attention to several forecasts.  I am a weather geek and I am still fascinated by the variances of forecasts from different sources.  Remember that most forecasts are Wasatch Front based and are not Oquirrh based or Great Salt Lake based.  Also pay attention to the weather flags at the Marina.  If we are expecting lightning, or strong winds the Storm Warning or Hurricane Force Warning flags will be up for the day. 

What should you do to prepare?  Remember that these thunderstorms can be very violent at times.  Winds from these storms can be just as violent as the storms we see late winter.  We have seen winds in excess of 80mph in some of these late afternoon storms.  That means that your boat could sustain damage even at the slip if you haven’t properly stored your boat.  And if you are on the water it is not going to be a fun experience at all.

While your boat is in the slip or on the hard:

• Check your dock lines.  If they are more than two years old, replace them!
• Check to make sure your sails are properly stowed.
• If you have a roller furling, make sure it is furled tightly.  Take a couple extra wraps with your genoa lines to secure it.  It is also a very good idea to take an extra halyard and wrap it around the genoa.
• Make sure, if your mainsail is on the boom, to cover it securely (WITH A GOOD MAINSAIL COVER!  Not an old ratty one).  Take a line and wrap it around the boom and mainsail.
• Check your standing rigging.  Is it secure?  Are the turnbuckles secured properly?  Are the clevis pins secured with STAINLESS cotter pins or split rings?
• Check to make sure all your property on your boat is secured.  Don’t let your property become projectiles that can damage other property or people.
• If on the hard, is your boat properly secured to your trailer?  Are your wheels chocked so the trailer can’t roll or twist around in the wind?

If you are going sailing:

• Does your motor work reliably?  Is it of proper horse power?  Also, realize that a motor may not power you in strong thunderstorms.  It just doesn’t have enough horse power to push you through the dense Great Salt Lake waves if we have a strong thunderstorm.
• Do you have life jackets for everyone aboard?  (Yes, you can drown on Great Salt Lake)
• Do you have a working cell phone that is fully charged?
• Do you have a marine band radio?
• Make sure you have a proper and functioning anchor.  It can save your boat from ending up on the reef or beach.
• Make sure the anchor is of the proper size
• Make sure you have the proper size and length of chain
• Make sure you have at least 150 feet of rode (line and chain).
• Make sure the anchor rode is free of tangles and is ready for deployment rapidly.
• Make sure the anchor line is attached to the boat.  I have seen many cases of people deploying the anchor and then having the line slip out of their hands before they can attach it to the boat.  It isn’t a bad idea to have a backup anchor and rode.
• Make sure the rode is in very good shape.
• Is your rig in good condition (check above)
• Check the forecast.
• Check the forecast for the day.  Check it often.  It can change through the day.
• Check satellite
• Check radar
• Check the wind forecast and current wind conditions on and around the lake.
• There are plenty of good cell phone apps for this now.
• Keep your eyes peeled to the west or southwest for building clouds above the mountains.  Don’t forget to look east too.  Sometime these thunderstorms can come down the Salt Lake Valley.
• Keep your eyes peeled towards the shore for blowing dusts.  If you see blowing dust towards Saltair, South Antelope Island or by the Stansbury Mountains, GET OFF THE LAKE NOW.

This a great time for sailing on the Great Salt Lake.  But please be prepared for monsoonal season.  And stay safe while sailing on Great Salt Lake.

Thanks
Dave