Weather Eye: Hang in there a bit longer, and we’ll see ‘normal’ again
By Patrick Timm
Published: July 29, 2018, 6:00am
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It was close for a few minutes Friday, but the weather station in Vancouver finally ticked 90 degrees shortly after 5 p.m., making it the sixth day of 90 degrees or better. Morning clouds and a deeper marine layer slowed daytime heating Saturday.
Would it make it to 90 degrees for the seventh day in a row? That was my thought as I looked at the official temperature reading of 77 degrees in Vancouver at 1 p.m. It reached 89 degrees at my column deadline.
Looking ahead to the upcoming work week, it appears that after a pair of 90-degrees-plus high temperatures today and Monday, we will finally start a cooling trend.
Tuesday it will be close to 90 degrees, probably in the upper 80s, but we could log another 90.
Morning clouds return each day Wednesday through the weekend. Highs will cool to the 75- to 80-degree range.
It should be a grand weather pattern for the opening of the Clark County Fair on Friday.
Can you imagine if the Fair had been last week? Wow.
As the fair runs the following week, the weather continues to look seasonal with highs of 75 to 85 degrees and varying amounts of morning clouds. Still no rain in sight unless we get thunderstorms moving up from the south. Always a possibility this time of the year but not foreseen.
Looking at the monthly statistics for July, Vancouver is running 3.5 degrees above normal on the average mean temperature, and the average high temperature for the first 27 days of the month was 86 degrees. Impressive.
Things continue to be way on the dry side, and we will probably be hearing about “drought” conditions for Southwest Washington. Already the Naselle River is running at its lowest level in 88 years.
Other streams are slightly better, but on the way down. Salmon Creek is still running about average for the end of July but will drop rapidly in August.
Get through the heat, humidity and smoky skies today and Monday, then things will get back somewhat “normal.”
Patrick Timm is a local weather specialist. His column appears Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Reach him at http://patricktimm.com
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