Weather matters

[phylisbide]

I have been pondering recently about the unreliable summer weather in the Dordogne - we even lit our woodburning stove this August. How far south do we need to go to find good, (imho) hot summers in France? Was this summer worse weather-wise than normal?

[Ron Avery]

Yes, last summer and 2003 were very hot and dry.  If this summer had not been wet, you would have had your drinking water rationed.  There is nowhere in France that can guarantee a hot summer or a mild winter.

I think most other people are focussing less on the weather and more on if they will still be able to aford to be in France next year.

[Tony F Dordogne]

This year August was very similar to last year in our part of 24 but September was good, as was last year.

Everybody was complaining about how wet the summer has been and while everything is very green, most potager people are moaning about very indifferent crops.

Haven't seen drinking water rationed here though - water for the garden yes - but not drinking water.

[Hoddy]

This year's summer weather in the Dordogne was unusual. One local described it as "bizarre". A friend who has a canoe hire business says that it was 20% down this year partly because the river was high virtually all summer.

Gardening was difficult; those of us who took a chance and planted tomatoes early were OK, those who planted later missed the frost but got the mildew. The nut crop looks as though it's going to be badly down on last year's too.

Hoddy

[Cat]

The weather in the Lot, just over the Dordogne border, has been decidedly odd this year.  We had a very mild winter, a warm spring and a wet summer.  Lots of locals say that we didn't really have a winter or a summer, just lots of the same weather all year.

I know 2 couples locally who run bistros/restaurants/hotels, and they both told me that their bookings and takings were much lower than normal this summer, due to the unreliable weather.  Both of these couples usually do a roaring trade in al-fresco evening meals, picking up a lot of the holidaymaker trade that passes through the village, but this year the weather meant that people just drove straight past.

[Gardian]

[quote user="Cat"]

The weather in the Lot, just over the Dordogne border, has been decidedly odd this year.  We had a very mild winter, a warm spring and a wet summer.  Lots of locals say that we didn't really have a winter or a summer, just lots of the same weather all year.

[/quote]

Pretty much ditto down here, but probably not such a wet Summer, though less blisteringly hot than previous years.  No worse for that, but the weather has simply been pretty unreliable generally, much like most of France and the UK.

[5-element]

Most locals here in Herault (34) agree that "we have not had a summer this year". This was apparent over the whole of France, watching the TV news throughout the summer, every day there was mention of what a terrible summer there has been in France; but in this region and around the Mediterranean, most agree that we were very lucky compared to the rest of France where it was cold and/or raining a lot, and also compared to Greece and around - with the extreme heat and fires they suffered.

[Nell]

I know it has rained a bit... BUT Think about it, when was the last time you needed to put your coat on?? If you are in the UK (North of Watford) when was the last time you had your coat off???

[Hoddy]

It's really not that bad, Neil.

Here in Leicestershire it's been 17C and sunny today.

Hoddy

[Tony F Dordogne]

23 in Sarlat this morning Hoddy, cloudy and overcast and still in short sleeved shirts!

[woolybanana]

Sat out in sun reading until about 1730 this day in the Vendée

[Suze01]

C'était pas normale le temps cette été.

That's what they're all saying in this part of the Dordogne.

[suein56]

Here in southern Brittany we have had a most odd year weatherwise - hot in April for about 3 weeks, miserable at times in May, June and July, very odd in August. September was glorious and so far October has been sunny and warm. I went to the beach this pm with a friend for a swim and the weather was lovely, the water felt cool on entry but a lot better after a couple of mins. 

Sue