Weather Forecast for South Wales

NigR

New member
The following link gives a good (though by no means infallible) weather forecast for Wales:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/ukweather/wales/

If you click on the individual places on the map (for example Swansea or Merthyr) you can then look at a five-day or 24 hour forecast for that particular place. Personally, I have found the 24 hour forecast to be surprisingly accurate.

It is also worth bearing in mind that, generally speaking, more rain tends to fall in the west than the east. Hence it may well be a good deal wetter in the Swansea Valley than over at Llangattock even though rain is forecast for both areas, although this may not always be the case.

As with all forecasts bear in mind that it is precisely that, a forecast. Other factors to take into account when planning a trip into a flood liable system include the amount of rain which may already have fallen locally in the preceeding few days and how saturated the ground may or may not be to begin with. Always seek local advice if it is available. If in doubt I would suggest erring on the side of caution - the cave will still be there another day.

Hoping this is of some assistance to anyone thinking of caving in South Wales.
 

Peter Burgess

New member
http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/wl/wl_forecast_weather.html

and

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/wl/wl_forecast_alltext.html

Straight from the horse's mouth. And you get a descriptive forecast typed by a forecaster as well as computer-generated predictions.
 

SamT

Moderator
Have to say - I favour the met office, as pete says - they are the dudes who give out the info to other sites, so all other sites are 2nd hand information.

Having said that - I suppose some local sites may put their own slant on it, given their local knowledge about the various microclimates etc
 
H

hoehlenforscher

Guest
And this one is a bit more specific too. Used by many oif the farmers here in the Beacons

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/loutdoor/mountainsafety/brecon.html
 

Peter Burgess

New member
Peter Burgess said:
hoehlenforscher said:
And this one is a bit more specific too. Used by many oif the farmers here in the Beacons

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/loutdoor/mountainsafety/brecon.html

That's excellent!  :)
I wonder whether this link should be in a 'sticky' post at the top of this section?
 
From Peter Burgess    "I wonder whether this link should be in a 'sticky' post at the top of this section?"  :sneaky:

Yes please,  :D  then I don't have to spend hours searching everytime I intend to go to Wales  :)
 

NigR

New member
Thanks to Peter and hoehlenforscher for the other links.

The more sources people consult before going caving the better so far as I am concerned.

Just be aware that different sites may not always say the same thing or, if they do, they may say it in a different way.

Personally, I tend to stick with the BBC site because I find the estimated wind speed and directions to be particularly useful when it comes to accessing some of the more remote digging sites.

 

RobinGriffiths

Well-known member
...and if you want, you can get a fantasy forecast from http://www.metcheck.com - at least for the longer term forecast.
 
H

hoehlenforscher

Guest
While we are at it then, another link to a site I use when doing something very rain critical on the farm. You need to run the 6 hour animation for full effect.

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/radar/index.html

I tend to then use a bit of common sense to estimate what the chances of being affected by rain are and how long you have before it hits. Obviously thunderstorms are a bit hard to account for but if they are about you can make allowances.
 

NigR

New member
hoehlenforscher said:
While we are at it then, another link to a site I use when doing something very rain critical on the farm. You need to run the 6 hour animation for full effect.

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/radar/index.html

I tend to then use a bit of common sense to estimate what the chances of being affected by rain are and how long you have before it hits. Obviously thunderstorms are a bit hard to account for but if they are about you can make allowances.

A good link this one - I would hazard a guess that this is where much of the info on the BBC site comes from.

And yes, I agree entirely - common sense has a vital role to play.
 

NigR

New member
Just out of interest, the BBC forecast for the last two days has been pretty accurate. Possibly not as sunny as initially predicted (pleasant all the same) and with a noticeably colder wind, at least at 600m. But so far as precipitation goes it has been spot on - i.e. none.

Water levels are back to normal for the time of year but the ground is still pretty saturated.

Forecast for tomorrow (Wednesday) is fine again but things look set to change on Thursday with rain coming in from the west.

The weekend looks as though it will be unsettled at best.
 

mikem

Well-known member
www.weatheronline.co.uk is useful for the maps showing how much rain is predicted each day during the next week & how much has fallen in the last 6, 12, 24, 48 & 72 hours:
vn_20091101_ukuk_en.gif

cgiaktgraph

Top is rain predicted for Sun 1st Nov & below is rain recorded in 6 hours prior to 7pm today.
 

pete_the_caver

New member
following the Craig Yr Ffynon shout last night, I thought it might be good to mention that if caving in the Clydach Gorge then it is better to get a forcast for Ebbw Vale than Abergavenny.  We can be lashed by torrential rain and gales up here when the sun is shining in Abe.r  Most of our weather comes through the gap from Ebbw Vale
 

Alkapton

Member
Weather forcast for South Wales:

It will rain and rain and rain and rain and rain and rain and rain and.......... :cry: :yucky: :cry:
 
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