It's almost a yellow snow...but not like where the huskies go. For roughly two weeks, usually early April, Atlanta literally turns yellow from pollen. The first year I was here was probably the worst. Not only could you see tire tracks through the pollen on asphalt, but it even kicked up the pollen dust as you drove through it. Seriously. Even with all the rain we've had so far this year, which would clean things a bit, it's still been a pretty average year.
A pollen count higher than 120 is considered extremely high. Today's (April 9th's) pollen count is 3,575. It's already been over 4,000, and I remember years where it exceeded 6,000. Thankfully, most of that pollen is too large to be an allergen, but it is still an eye and throat irritant. Your throat feels parched, sometimes like you just drank sand....if you stay outside for too long.
If you don't believe me, here are a few pictures. It rained 2 days ago, so this build-up is over less than 48 hours:
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The line is where the garage door hits the floor. The left half is outside my garage. The right half is inside |
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Here you can see the tire's tread marks as well as my footprint in the pollen. |
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Tire tread is yellow just from driving down the street. |
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Weber grill. |
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Top of trash can. |
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Cheryl's sandal is covered in yellow just from being outside. You can see the line where her jeans had partially covered the sandal. |
