Octave

While Colorado was bracing for snow, we experienced tropical storm (chubasco) Octave. Octave was a tropical depression on Saturday, October 12 and a tropical storm about 300 miles SSW of Baja the next day. By Monday (10/14), Octave was less than 200 miles from southern Baja with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph. NOAA’s National Hurricane Center predicted 3-6 inches of rain, storm surge with large waves and coastal flooding on the west side of the peninsula (www.nhc.noaa.gov). Octave made landfall Monday night (10/14) and early Tuesday (10/15). It was downgraded to a tropical depression as it passed over Baja north of us; by late Tuesday, it was a “remnant low” over mainland Mexico.

NASA Terra satellite image of Octave October 14 at 2:40 PM (NASA Goddard MODIS Rapid Response Team (www.nasa.gov)

We had thunderstorms in Los Barriles beginning Saturday evening. After the rains, the desert gave off a pungent, resin-like smell. We watched a small wash next to the house begin to fill with muddy water from the surrounding hills; during the night, the runoff widened the channel cutting into the base of the driveway.

Octave on Sunday afternoon from the house

By Monday morning, the wind was blowing strong and steady from the SW and the swells from the south were creating perfect 3 ft waves on the rocky point near the house. Between rain squalls, we took a walk on the beach; here are some of things tossed up by the waves.

Triggerfish

Balloonfish

The remnants of Octave created a beautiful sunrise on Tuesday.