USVI-On-Line

Hi Everyone,

I've been reading a lot about it being hazy and there being Sahara dust lately. We're planning a trip for next June, is this common to June weather? Our first trip was this past April and weather was wonderful, how does June compare to April?

thanks

There's been at least some haziness every time we've gone in June. Some days are better than others. June is a great time to go, though, so don't let the haziness chase you away.

Sahara dust is not a predictable phenomena -- welcome as it dries out the upper atmosphere and shades the ocean, lowering the water temp. but unpredictable none the less, especially a year out.

Just got back from a week on STJ (trip report soon come...i hope).

I noticed immediately when I got off the plane on Monday the 25th about 4pm how much cooler it was than I'd remembered in four previous June trips. It was very pleasant outside, though the sky was hazy.

Rachel was our driver and she explained that while the haze wasn't visually appealing, it kept the temps down (especially the water temps as ExitZero alluded to) and the locals attributed the lower water temps as a reason why they haven't had a hurricane in 16 years.

Overall, I'd say only two of our seven days were actually what you'd call hazy. The other five had bright blue skies and awesome sunshine. About the only time we ever really noticed the haze was when we gazed beyond the bays to distant islands that looked like they were in a perpetual mist and sometimes when we snorkeled, it wasn't as vibrant.

Regardless, we would not use it as an excuse not to come back in June. You take the bad and see the good...

Sahara dust...but slghtly cooler than average temps.

Dry and brown patches on the island...but almost no mosquitos or no see ums

It evens out and June is just a great month to go for a variety of reason...low season prices, not typically rainy, less crowded, most if not all restaurants and bars are still open, people are in a good mood heading into carnival...it's all good.

And for us Texans, it's actually a brief respite from the 100 degree plus heat.

Thanks for all the comments. For many reasons looks like end of June is when we'll be able to go next year. Glad to hear that its not a deal breaker.
Looking forward to your trip report 54b, I'm still trying to get mine together from April, hopefully it will be up soon as well.

http://www.weathercarib.com/120704-SAL.jpg
This is a good representation of the SAL - Sahara air layer