Weather Eye: We finally hit 60 degrees, but our chilly spring continues

We finally reached 60 degrees Friday for the first time this month, and lucky me, it was my birthday.

As clouds increased Saturday afternoon, a few local weather stations had reached 60, but official thermometers were a bit lower. Rain showers and cooler air aloft today will keep us under 60 degrees and provide opportunities for thunder, hail and sunbreaks.

Even colder air arrives with another weather system Monday, and snow levels plummet to 1,200 feet Tuesday. More wet snow in our foothills. The mountain wildflower season will be running late this year.

I ventured northward for my birthday weekend and visited the tulip fields in La Conner. Only the daffodils were in bloom; the tulips were in tight buds as if trying to keep warm. It is so cold this spring, locals told me the tulip festival will extend into May.

Many areas of the county had a hard freeze Thursday and Friday, with some reports in the 20s. Be wary of setting out tender plants. Although I don’t see a frost the next several days because of a continual flow of clouds off the ocean, when we clear off again, it will freeze.

As usual, extended forecast charts want to paint a dry and mild period by next weekend. This has been the prediction for weeks on end, so I take it with a grain of salt.

A few readers have asked me when to expect the last frost. Most of downtown Vancouver is past the average last frost. It can occur from Hazel Dell northward and eastward into mid-May in colder springs like this one. I never plant warm-weather crops in the garden until Mother’s Day.