Heavy storm clouds hang over Troutdale, Ore., March 6, 2023.
Kristyna Wentz-Graff / OPB
If you’re like a lot of us in the Pacific Northwest, you’ve about had it with the snow, rain, and general dreariness of winter that seems to have carried well into spring.
Portland had already had one 75-degree day by this date last year, compared to a peak of 68 degrees so far this spring (March 18). Other data from the National Weather Service for the Portland International Airport location supports the “where’s spring?” lament:
- For the period of March 1 through April 10 this year, there have been 7.38 inches of rain. That’s up from the normal amount of 5.06 inches for that span.
- The average temperature for the same period has been about 3 degrees below the historical average.
- And while historical averages for cloud cover are not available, PDX has seen 25 mostly cloudy days from March 1 through April 10, up from 16 during the same period last year.
But according to Hannah Chandler-Cooley, a meteorologist at Portland’s National Weather Service office, the gloom is not that far out of the normal range of expected weather this time of year.
“These shoulder seasons are much more variable,” Chandler-Cooley said Tuesday. “While it should naturally be warming, these cooler weather systems lately have kept it cooler.”
The agency’s forecast sees some 60-plus-degree temps for Western Oregon by Saturday, but a trend back to cooler weather is forecast by the beginning of next week. That sunny, warm afternoon at the park or the beach might have to wait for at least a couple more weeks.