Oops…we did it again!  In recent years, Pacific Northwest winters have trended toward having the coldest & snowiest weather late in the season, in February and early March:  late February 2011, March 2012, Feb. 2014, Feb. 2018, Feb/Mar 2019, Feb. 2021 and now late February 2023.  Of course there was last April’s freak snowstorm, but I see that as more of a flukish spring event than an extension of winter.  This never used to be the case; throughout most of the late 20th century our coldest weather usually came in December and January, with February often feeling more like a prelude to (very) early spring.

I’m not going to elaborate on last Wednesday’s historic late-season snowstorm at PDX (10.8 inches = 2nd snowiest day on record).  My neighborhood got 6-7″, and the modified arctic air behind the snowstorm kept roads iced up for 2-3 days afterward despite some daytime thawing.  Today is the last day of meteorological winter (Dec. 1 – Feb. 28), so how did we do for temps?

December was chilly; 2.6 degrees F below normal at PDX.

January was slightly on the warm side, 1.4 degrees above normal.

February was 2.7 degrees below normal not counting today.  Since today is chilly again with marginal snow/slush showers, that average will probably drop a couple tenths of a degree when the final numbers come in.  When you add it all up…our winter will clock in at 1.3 to 1.4 F below normal.  Definitely not a “harsh” one, but it has been on the chilly side.  When you consider that November was also chilly (-3.4F departure), and early March is looking to be chilly too, it creates the impression that this was definitely a “long” winter season.  Of course Midwesterners would laugh at us – but hey, the vast majority of the human population doesn’t live in severe continental climates, so…

As for precip?  December was decisively wet, about 2″ above normal.  January and February were a bit on the dry side, about 1-1.5″ below normal.  So the final numbers will come out pretty close to normal.

Looking ahead….even though tomorrow is technically the first day of spring in the weather world, it’s not going to feel that way.  Cold upper-level troughing is expected to continue across the region for much of the next 10 days.  In early March that usually doesn’t mean frigid east wind and arctic air.  Instead, it means chilly onshore flow from the North Pacific, with 850mb airmass temperatures around -5 to -7 Celsius, snow levels between 500 and 2,000 feet, and lowland daytime temps only in the low/mid 40s (mid 50s is normal!).  Some hardcore winter weather geeks will insist that winter is over, since we are unlikely to get another disruptive snowstorm in this pattern.  But given that our winters are normally on the mild side with temps in the 40s, it’s kind of tough to think of this as a turn toward springtime.

By the way…La Niña conditions in the tropical Pacific are winding down now, with a chance of El Niño by next fall and winter.  But the effects of this pattern often lag a couple months behind, which is why we appear to be setting up for another cool spring season here.  Hopefully it won’t be as chilly and damp as last spring, but you never know!

Perhaps this is the natural payback for our unusually long & warm summer / early fall last year.  In the meantime, if you’re sick and tired of the wintry chill, here’s a photo to help you feel a little bit warmer!

-Karl