Weather Eye: A chance of rain and an early look at woolly bears

We managed to stay dry through Monday afternoon as light rain was occurring not too far north of Clark County.

It rained all Sunday night and into Monday along the Washington coast, with rainfall amounts approaching a half inch. Still a chance of some rain Wednesday through Friday as the jet stream remains very close to Clark County.

The heaviest moisture will be along the coastal strip and in Puget Sound.

At least we had a very pleasant weekend, with many folks making that trek to the pumpkin patch. I hope you had a chance to spend a little time outdoors.

Several inquiries about the saga of the woolly bear caterpillars have reached my e-mail inbox. I have only seen two of the furry critters so far this fall, and both had equal segments of orange and black.

Several readers have sent me photos of caterpillars, but they were not a genuine woolly bear, as they had white hairy spikes on both ends.

The woolly bear is the caterpillar stage of the Isabella tiger moth, Pyrrharctia isabella.

The black and orange woolly bear is the only official caterpillar prognosticator of winter weather. Legend has it that the wider the middle segment, the milder the winter weather. A narrow middle indicates a possible cold and snowy winter.

And in all fairness, this lowly critter has had about the same success as many of the almanacs and perhaps a few professionals in the weather business, as well.

Pat Timm is a local weather specialist. His column appears Tuesdays, Thursdays atnd Sundays. Reach him at weathersystems.com.