Long before technology was developed to predict the weather, people had to rely on observation, patterns and folk lore to avoid being caught off guard by the elements. If your plans, livelihood or even your survival depend on the weather, it certainly wouldn't hurt to become familiar with some of these methods, especially since you never know when you might be out of touch with the local weather report. These methods aren't foolproof, but they have their usefulness, and if you don't have a forecast on hand, what do you have to lose by trying them?

I tell you what - this is one of those projects where I didn't know what I was getting myself into - half way through I thought I had really messed up, then when we finished it, I was so relieved and happy at the job we did. Saving ourselves about 15k helped my attitude throughout, I must say!