Some RAWS records for Oregon

[wx_statman]

I thought I would share some outstanding RAWS readings with you guys. Otherwise they get no exposure, since they are not counted as official by the NWS or the NCDC. They are lost in the proverbial data pile.

 

The RAWS (Remote Automated Weather Stations) are not manned and not quality controlled. Caution needs to be exercised when taking their readings into consideration. Having said that, I feel reasonably confident in the following readings to bring them to light. They are certainly no less suspect than some older COOP readings that are counted as official, when they should probably be reviewed and tossed out. But I digress!

 

Also, the RAWS network only went up in 1985 and is very spotty in nature, with a bunch of different stations coming and going. So the readings below are 1) recent and 2) opportunistic in nature. But I think they're still interesting to look at!

 

January

 

• 86F was observed at Red Mound on 1/15/2009. This is an excellent downsloping location just up the coast from Brookings. The highest reliably measured official temperature in Oregon in January is 80F at Brookings on 1/28/1984. Red Mound also hit 82F on January 15th of this year, so it looks like they have no problem exceeding any official reading in Oregon in January under the right circumstances (strong ridge with downslope warming).  

 

February

 

• 86F was observed at Wheeler Creek on 2/25/1992. This is another great downsloping location just SE of Brookings. The highest reliably measured official temperature in Oregon in February is 85F at both Coquille and Myrtle Point, also on 2/25/1992.

 

September

 

• 112F was observed at Trout Creek on 9/2/1988. This appears to be one of the best locations for downslope warming in the Cascade foothills of Oregon, similar to Darrington and Glenoma in Washington. The highest reliably measured official temperature in Oregon in September is 111F at Illahe on 9/3/1955. Trout Creek also recorded 102F on 9/27/2003 and 101F on 10/1/1987, which is the only 100F reading that I am aware of in October anywhere in the Willamette River basin.

October

 

• 106F was observed at both Powers RS and Wheeler Creek on 10/10/1991. The official Powers COOP station recorded 103F that day. The highest reliably measured official temperature in Oregon in October is 104F at Dora on 10/2/1980 and the next day at Lost Creek Dam on 10/3/1980.

 

• -14F was observed at Foster Flat on 10/31/2002. This is a great radiational cooling location in Harney County. The lowest reliably measured official temperature in Oregon in October is -11F at both Seneca and Fort Rock, also on 10/31/2002.

 

[Jesse]

Awesome thread. I love this stuff.

[SilverFallsAndrew]

Foster Flat often has the lowest recorded daily temp in Oregon.

[snow_wizard]

Fascinating stuff.  One that really jumped out was the monthly record high in September 1955.  The coldest year of the 20th century and yet it had monthly record setting heat in June (at least in the Seattle area) and September in Oregon.  Quite a dynamic year!

[wx_statman]

Fascinating stuff.  One that really jumped out was the monthly record high in September 1955.  The coldest year of the 20th century and yet it had monthly record setting heat in June (at least in the Seattle area) and September in Oregon.  Quite a dynamic year!

 

The two heat waves in 1955 always fascinated me. The June event is a top-5 heat wave for the Puget Sound, and the earliest in the calendar to occur. Downtown Seattle at 100F on 6/9. After a frigid mid summer, PDX hit 98F in September.

 

Those two events would stand out in any year. Even more so in the middle of a historically cold year.

[snow_wizard]

The two heat waves in 1955 always fascinated me. The June event is a top-5 heat wave for the Puget Sound, and the earliest in the calendar to occur. Downtown Seattle at 100F on 6/9. After a frigid mid summer, PDX hit 98F in September.

 

Those two events would stand out in any year. Even more so in the middle of a historically cold year.

 

It almost seems impossible that a period like 1954 through early 1957 ever happened in this climate.

[IbrChris]

Interesting. I have the following records for Oregon, by month

Record Hi Max
Jan: 80 at Brookings on 28/1994
Feb: 85 at Coquille, Myrtle Point on 25/1992
Mar: 88 at Brookings on 18/1914
Apr: 98 at Cave Junction on 21/2009
May: 108 at Cave Junction on 16/2008
Jun: 113 at Pelton Dam on 23/1992
Jul: 117 at Umatilla on 27/1939 (119 at Pendleton incorrect)
Aug: 116 at Spray on 4/1961
Sept: 111 at Illahe on 3/1955
Oct: 104 at Dora on 2/1980
Nov: 88 at Brookings on 2/1929
Dec: 79 at Brookings on 11/1951

I didn't know about most of those RAWS values, so a big thanks for digging those up. Flynn Prairie near Red Mound hit 83 on Jan 15, 2014 (with a low of 67).

Record Lo Min:

Jan: -52 at Austin on 8/1937
Feb: -54 at Seneca and Ukiah on 9/1933
Mar: -30 at Fremont on 1/1922

Apr: -23 at Meacham on 1/1936
May: 0 at Juniper Lake on 2/1968
Jun: 11 at Crater Lake NP on 12/1952
Jul: 14 at Fremont on 2/1955
Aug: 13 at Seneca on 28/1937
Sep: 1 at Seneca on 1/1931
Oct: -11 at Seneca and Fort Rock on 31/2002
Nov: -32 at Ukiah on 23/1985
Dec: -53 at Riverside on 25/1924

Rec Lo Max: -21 at Austin on Jan 19, 1937
Rec Hi Min: 85 at Arlington on Jul 13, 2002

24 hour precip:

Jan: 9.01 at Port Orford 5E on 16/1974
Feb: 7.26 at Valsetz on 1/1927
Mar: 8.79 at Brookings on 18/1932
Apr: 8.06 at Port Orford 5E on 3/1993
May: 6.23 at Laurel Mtn on 6/2009
Jun: 7.78 at Laurel Mtn on 7/1985
Jul: 4.11 at Port Orford 5E on 1/1983
Aug: 4.12 at Langlois on 24/1977
Sep: 5.54 at Port Orford 5E on 27/1981
Oct: 8.90 at Laurel Mtn on 27/1994
Nov: 14.30 at Lees Camp on 6-7/2006 (highest 24 hour total)
Dec: 12.33 at Laurel Mtn on 3/2007

Monthly Precip:

Jan: 47.23 at Valsetz in 1953
Feb: 39.51 at Laurel Mtn in 1999
Mar: 30.80 at North Fork in 2014
Apr: 26.20 at North Fork in 1993
May: 13.80 at North Fork in 2013
Jun: 13.00 at North Fork in 2010
Jul: 8.21 at Nehalem 8NE in 1983
Aug: 8.78 at Valsetz in 1968
Sep: 18.15 at Laurel Mtn in 2013
Oct: 29.71 at Valsetz in 1956
Nov: 57.00 at Glenora in 1909
Dec: 56.00 at North Fork in 1996

Year Max: 204.12 at Laurel Mtn in 1996
Year Min: 2.56 at Fields in 2002

[IbrChris]

Of note the highest 24 hour precip, highest monthly precip and highest annual precip for WA were all recorded at June Lake

24 hour: 15.20 on 6-7/2006
Month: 64.60 in 11/2006
Calendar Year: 236.60 in 1996 (Water Year slightly higher for 1996-97).

[IbrChris]

There's a report of -60 at Paulina Crater on Jan 22, 1962. I'm not sure of the details surrounding this reading but the topography suggests very cold temps are possible here.

[SilverFallsAndrew]

There's a report of -60 at Paulina Crater on Jan 22, 1962. I'm not sure of the details surrounding this reading but the topography suggests very cold temps are possible here.

 

Wow. What is the source of that report? Paulina Crater is about 6300' within a caldera so it is conceivable that they have a pretty significant frost hollow there. On the other hand that temp blows away anything else ever recorded in Oregon.

 

The 1962 arctic outbreak was pretty impressive. Salem had a low of 8 on the 22nd and Redmond recorded a -27 which is their all time January record low and tied with last December for their 2nd lowest temp on record.  

[IbrChris]

This guy has put together a nice listing of cold records in Oregon

http://www.oregonphotos.com/Oregon-hot-n-cold-records.html

[IbrChris]

Coldest three-day spell on record in Oregon:

Austin
Jan 19-21, 1937

Jan 19: high of -21 (state record coldest high temp)

Jan 20: high of -18, low of -48
Jan 21: high of -13, low of -45

[SilverFallsAndrew]

January 1937 had like 3-4 separate arctic intrusions....

 

The coldest one in Salem looks to be the arctic blast in the January 6-8 timeframe. 

[wx_statman]

Interesting. I have the following records for Oregon, by month

 

Record Hi Max

Jan: 80 at Brookings on 28/1994

Feb: 85 at Coquille, Myrtle Point on 25/1992

Mar: 88 at Brookings on 18/1914

Apr: 98 at Cave Junction on 21/2009

May: 108 at Cave Junction on 16/2008

Jun: 113 at Pelton Dam on 23/1992

Jul: 117 at Umatilla on 27/1939 (119 at Pendleton incorrect)

Aug: 116 at Spray on 4/1961

Sept: 111 at Illahe on 3/1955

Oct: 104 at Dora on 2/1980

Nov: 88 at Brookings on 2/1929

Dec: 79 at Brookings on 11/1951

 

I didn't know about most of those RAWS values, so a big thanks for digging those up. Flynn Prairie near Red Mound hit 83 on Jan 15, 2014 (with a low of 67).

 

Record Lo Min:

 

Jan: -52 at Austin on 8/1937

Feb: -54 at Seneca and Ukiah on 9/1933

Mar: -30 at Fremont on 1/1922

Apr: -23 at Meacham on 1/1936

May: 0 at Juniper Lake on 2/1968

Jun: 11 at Crater Lake NP on 12/1952

Jul: 14 at Fremont on 2/1955

Aug: 13 at Seneca on 28/1937

Sep: 1 at Seneca on 1/1931

Oct: -11 at Seneca and Fort Rock on 31/2002

Nov: -32 at Ukiah on 23/1985

Dec: -53 at Riverside on 25/1924

 

Rec Lo Max: -21 at Austin on Jan 19, 1937

Rec Hi Min: 85 at Arlington on Jul 13, 2002

 

24 hour precip:

 

Jan: 9.01 at Port Orford 5E on 16/1974

Feb: 7.26 at Valsetz on 1/1927

Mar: 8.79 at Brookings on 18/1932

Apr: 8.06 at Port Orford 5E on 3/1993

May: 6.23 at Laurel Mtn on 6/2009

Jun: 7.78 at Laurel Mtn on 7/1985

Jul: 4.11 at Port Orford 5E on 1/1983

Aug: 3.61 at Brookings on 29/1983

Sep: 5.54 at Port Orford 5E on 27/1981

Oct: 8.90 at Laurel Mtn on 27/1994

Nov: 14.30 at Lees Camp on 6-7/2006 (highest 24 hour total)

Dec: 12.33 at Laurel Mtn on 3/2007

 

Monthly Precip:

 

Jan: 47.23 at Valsetz in 1953

Feb: 39.51 at Laurel Mtn in 1999

Mar: 30.80 at North Fork in 2014

Apr: 26.20 at North Fork in 1993

May: 13.80 at North Fork in 2013

Jun: 13.00 at North Fork in 2010

Jul: 8.21 at Nehalem 8NE in 1983

Aug: 8.78 at Valsetz in 1968

Sep: 18.15 at Laurel Mtn in 2013

Oct: 29.71 at Valsetz in 1956

Nov: 57.00 at Glenora in 1909

Dec: 56.00 at North Fork in 1996

 

Year Max: 204.12 at Laurel Mtn in 1996

Year Min: 2.56 at Fields in 2002

 

Good stuff. I did a comprehensive study of Oregon extreme temperatures back in 2009. I just dug up the post I made on Western. You might like it:

 

http://theweatherforums.com/archive/index.php?/topic/26854-oregons-temperature-extremes/

 

Thanks for the precip info. That's the first time I've seen something like that summarized for Oregon.

[wx_statman]

There's a report of -60 at Paulina Crater on Jan 22, 1962. I'm not sure of the details surrounding this reading but the topography suggests very cold temps are possible here.

 

That's a believable reading. Alkali Lake and The Poplars both hit -38 officially in that cold wave.

 

There were supposedly readings down to -62 in the December 1924 cold wave. Officially both Riverside and Drewsey hit -53.

 

Also Seneca supposedly hit -55 in January 1927, when Ukiah recorded an official -46.

 

And finally there were press reports of readings down to -57 in December 1919. Since official readings were down to -40 in Madras and -37 in Hermiston - far from the coldest locations in Oregon normally - readings into the -50's in cold spots were possible.

[wx_statman]

Wow. What is the source of that report? Paulina Crater is about 6300' within a caldera so it is conceivable that they have a pretty significant frost hollow there. On the other hand that temp blows away anything else ever recorded in Oregon.

 

The 1962 arctic outbreak was pretty impressive. Salem had a low of 8 on the 22nd and Redmond recorded a -27 which is their all time January record low and tied with last December for their 2nd lowest temp on record.  

 

I've actually seen that -60 report from Paulina Crater too. I believe it was in the press at the time it happened, and was later quoted (maybe 10 years ago?) on the internet.

 

The January 1962 event was very impressive. Roseburg hit -1 and even Cape Blanco pulled off 30/19.

[IbrChris]

Good stuff. I did a comprehensive study of Oregon extreme temperatures back in 2009. I just dug up the post I made on Western. You might like it:

 

http://theweatherforums.com/archive/index.php?/topic/26854-oregons-temperature-extremes/

 

Thanks for the precip info. That's the first time I've seen something like that summarized for Oregon.

I did a precip study a few months ago suspecting that June Lake had shattered the "official" WA record annual precip at Wynoochee Oxbow back in the 1930s. Turns out it did by about 50 inches!! That project then spread to several Snotels in Oregon that receive heavy precip...most notably North Fork in eastern Multnomah County. Also Bear Mtn in northern Idaho (ID wettest location). You can find the data on WRCC.

[IbrChris]

We need a station in Paulina Crater...it's our own Peter Sinks basically. Remote and frigid. I'd venture to guess under similar conditions it beats Seneca by a fair margin.

[IbrChris]

Good stuff. I did a comprehensive study of Oregon extreme temperatures back in 2009. I just dug up the post I made on Western. You might like it:

 

http://theweatherforums.com/archive/index.php?/topic/26854-oregons-temperature-extremes/

 

Thanks for the precip info. That's the first time I've seen something like that summarized for Oregon.

Amazing post! Allowed me to tweak my own data a bit.

 

I've put together a similar monthly records database for most US states, all Canadian provinces and some Mexican states (work in progress)...so just inquire if you are interested in a particular state/prov. Canadian ones weren't too difficult given the data on Environment Canada's website, the mining just takes a lot of time and patience. There doesn't seem to be a comprehensive list of monthly temp and precip extremes by province. You can find the absolute extremes online for each province but it's interesting to look at it from a monthly perspective IMO. Mexican data comes from the CONAGUA website with a rather friendly Google Maps display with all the stations on it. Precip data for Chiapas is especially impressive. Biggest problem I've come up against are dubious data, specifically extreme high temps with 120 degree readings found not only in Baja California and Sonora but also in Tamaulipas and Veracruz (among others). While I can't completely dismiss those, they seem a tad high.

[IbrChris]

Wx Statman, for April what do you think of Cave Junction 98 on 21/2009?
 

Also I noticed you posted a bunch of images of Oregon daily records, however I can't access those images (says I'm not logged in). Any way you could email them to me? chris.callais@iberdrolaren.com

[IbrChris]

Since folks may be interested in WA stats here they are:

Extreme Max Temp

Jan: 74 at Darrington on 31/1940
Feb: 83 at Centerville on 27/1895
Mar: 87 at Mottinger on 10/1914
Apr: 103 at Wahluke on 28/1934
May: 107 at Dallesport on 30/1986
Jun: 112 at John Day Dam on 18/1961
Jul: 118 at Wahluke on 24/1928
Aug: 118 at Ice Harbor Dam on 5/1961
Sep: 108 at Glenoma on 3/1988
Oct: 99 at Glenoma on 2/1987
Nov: 83 at Kosmos on 3/1949
Dec: 74 at Sedro Woolley on 5/1939

Interesting that the wintertime records are up in NW Washington.

Extreme Min Temp:

Jan: -42 at Deer Park on 20/1937
Feb: -40 at Deer Park on 9/1933 (same night Seneca hit -54)
Mar: -25 at Stockdill Ranch (Okanogan Co.) on 4/1955
Apr: -7 at Lake Keechelus on 1/1936
May: 2 at Mt. Rainier-Camp Muir on 5/2010 (ok, not official but credible)
Jun: 11 at Mt. Rainier-Camp Muir on 7/2012
Jul: 18 at Mt. Rainier-Camp Muir on 3/2012
Aug: 20 at Cascade Tunnel in 1896 (don't have the exact date but in NCDC database)
Sep: 11 at Newport on 25/1934
Oct: -5 at Bumping Lake on 31/1935
Nov: -29 at Ellensburg on 28/1896 (major late Nov arctic blast)
Dec: -48 at Mazama and Winthrop on 30/1968

Lowest max temp: -21 at Winthrop on Dec 30, 1968
Highest min temp: 89 at Kennewick on 2/1977 (iffy credibility).

24 hour precip:

Jan: 12.00 at Quinault RS on 21/1935
Feb: 10.50 at Quinault RS on 19/1968
Mar: 10.07 at Quinault RS on 6/1972
Apr: 8.92 at Cougar 6E on 12/1954
May: 5.52 at Quinault RS on 5/1975
Jun: 5.05 at Aberdeen 20NNE on 12/2000
Jul: 9.13 at Clearwater on 12/1972
Aug: 4.34 at Aberdeen 20NNE on 22/2001
Sep: 7.50 at Swift Creek on 28-29/2013 (during the Sept 2013 deluge)
Oct: 8.48 at Quinault RS on 10/1950
Nov: 15.20 at June Lake on 6-7/2006 (official)
Dec: 14.30 at Hoh RS on 4/2007

Monthly Precip:

Jan: 50.39 at Quinault RS in 1935
Feb: 46.20 at June Lake in 1999
Mar: 42.00 at June Lake in 1983
Apr: 22.50 at June Lake in 1991
May: 17.00 at Alpine Meadows in 2010

Jun: 15.10 at Skookum Creek in 2012
Jul: 13.69 at Clearwater in 1983
Aug: 15.07 at Quillayute in 1991
Sep: 26.50 at Swift Creek in 2013
Oct: 33.40 at Clearwater in 1975
Nov: 64.60 at June Lake in 2006 (state record)
Dec: 57.04 at Peterson's Ranch (near Cougar, "official" state record)

Year Max: 236.60 at June Lake in 1996 (calendar year)
Year Min: 2.61 at Wahluke in 1910

Wx Statman feel free to vet any of these, I'd be interested in your take. I haven't looked at the records themselves as closely as I have Oregon's, but this is a good place to start.

[IbrChris]

By the way, how did the wind farm power generation do in the high winds last week?  I was guessing that some records were set.

Actually the east winds were pretty impressive given the direction (rare to see strong production in east winds in the Columbia Basin...west winds yes). The backdoor arctic front provided a good 12-18 hours of wind near full power at our parks in Klickitat, Sherman and Gilliam/Morrow counties.

 

Considering the direction they were probably the most impressive E-NE winds I've seen since I've been doing this job (4 years)

[IbrChris]

Wx Statman you may be familiar with the following BC superlatives:

Record High: 112 at Lillooet and Lytton on Jul 17, 1941
Record Low: -74 at Smith River on Jan 31, 1947
24 hour precip: 19.26 at Ucluelet-Brynnor Mines on Oct 6, 1967
Month precip: 79.47 at Henderson Lake in Dec 1923

Calendar year precip (most): 373.19 at Henderson Lake in 1997
Calendar year precip (least): 2.80 at Ashcroft in 1938
24 hour snow: 57.0 at Tahtsa Lake West
Month snow: 271.5 at Mt Washington Resort (Vancouver Island) in Feb 1999 (same season Mt. Baker set US seasonal record)
Season snow: 963.0 at Revelstoke Mt. Copeland in 1971-72.

Values in degrees Fahrenheit and inches.

[IbrChris]

I'm interested in the California numbers.

Ok...again these are not exhaustive in terms of the number of stations I went through. I went through all stations I reasonably expected to have state temp records, precip records or snow records. Monthly record highs/lows are documented by NCDC and for most months the numbers I cite here are NCDC values. For precip only the top 24 hour total is considered official by NCDC so other monthly values are unofficial but ones I consider reasonable and likely legitimate.

 

Max/Min/24 hour precip/Monthly precip record

 

Jan:

97 at Indio on 19/1971

-45 at Boca on 20/1937

25.83" at Hogees Camp on 22-23/1943

71.54" at Helen Mine in 1909

 

Feb:

100 at Thermal and Mecca on 27/1986

-43 at Boca on 7/1989

13.69" at Opids Camp on 22/1944

45.61" at Bowman Dam in 1904

 

Mar:

107 at Mecca on 21/2004

-35 at White Mountain on 10/1964

14.92" at Opids Camp on 2/1938

39.92" at La Porte in 1907

 

Apr:

118 at Volcano Springs on 25/1898

-30 at White Mountain on 27/1970

11.18" at Opids Camp on 4/1926

26.06" at Honeydew in 1963

 

May:

124 at Salton on 27/1896

-15 at White Mountain on 7/1964

5.97" at Fort **** on 5/1963

16.69" at Bowman Dam in 1915

 

Jun:

131 at Badwater on 29/1994

0 at White Mountain on 6/2007

4.87" at Crescent City on 7/1920

8.03" at Crescent City in 1937

 

Jul:

129 at Death Valley on 18/1998

12 at Bodie on 1/1997

4.74" at Crescent City on 27/1947

9.25" at Crescent City in 1947

 

Aug:

127 at Furnace Creek on 3/1993

12 at Bodie on 24/2000

4.69" at Twin Lakes on 12/1965

6.36" at Twin Lakes in 1965

 

Sep:

126 at Mecca on 2/1950

-5 at White Mountain on 23/1973

7.41" at Upper Mattole on 12/1895

11.17" at Klamath in 1977

 

Oct:

117 at Mecca on 2/1980

-20 at White Mountain on 29/1961

11.50" at Orick Prairie Creek on 29/1950

34.15" at Gasquet RS in 1950

 

Nov:

109 at Greenland Ranch on 5/1947

-28 at White Mountain on 17/1958

10.53" at Honeydew on 9/1971

45.96 at Gasquet RS in 1973

 

Dec:

100 at La Mesa on 8/1938

-40 at Termo on 9/1972

12.91" at Gasquet RS on 31/1951

45.22" at Bowman Dam in 1964

 

Annual

Wettest Calendar Year: 188.50" at Musalatt in 1983

Driest Calendar Year: 0.00" at Death Valley in 1929 (probably other years)

 

 

 

[wx_statman]

I did a precip study a few months ago suspecting that June Lake had shattered the "official" WA record annual precip at Wynoochee Oxbow back in the 1930s. Turns out it did by about 50 inches!! That project then spread to several Snotels in Oregon that receive heavy precip...most notably North Fork in eastern Multnomah County. Also Bear Mtn in northern Idaho (ID wettest location). You can find the data on WRCC.

 

Snotels are now considered official data by the NCDC as well. That's a recent change apparently.

[wx_statman]

Amazing post! Allowed me to tweak my own data a bit.

 

I've put together a similar monthly records database for most US states, all Canadian provinces and some Mexican states (work in progress)...so just inquire if you are interested in a particular state/prov. Canadian ones weren't too difficult given the data on Environment Canada's website, the mining just takes a lot of time and patience. There doesn't seem to be a comprehensive list of monthly temp and precip extremes by province. You can find the absolute extremes online for each province but it's interesting to look at it from a monthly perspective IMO. Mexican data comes from the CONAGUA website with a rather friendly Google Maps display with all the stations on it. Precip data for Chiapas is especially impressive. Biggest problem I've come up against are dubious data, specifically extreme high temps with 120 degree readings found not only in Baja California and Sonora but also in Tamaulipas and Veracruz (among others). While I can't completely dismiss those, they seem a tad high.

 

Unfortunately everywhere you look in the world is filled with bad data when it comes to weather records. Its too easy to screw up.

 

Have you heard of Maximiliano Herrera? That guy apparently created a personal database of records for the whole planet. I think he's trying to get every country he can. He contributes to Christopher Burt's posts on Wunderground.

[wx_statman]

Wx Statman, for April what do you think of Cave Junction 98 on 21/2009?

 

Also I noticed you posted a bunch of images of Oregon daily records, however I can't access those images (says I'm not logged in). Any way you could email them to me? chris.callais@iberdrolaren.com

 

Cave Junction has had a bunch of suspiciously high readings in the last decade. But they're official as far as I can tell, and the 98 is within the realm of possibility for that heat wave.

 

I'll have to see if I still have that database saved. It was kind of a spur of the moment project that I did back then. I know that sounds kind of weird...but I didn't have any plans for it.

[wx_statman]

Since folks may be interested in WA stats here they are:

 

Extreme Max Temp

 

Jan: 74 at Darrington on 31/1940

Feb: 83 at Centerville on 27/1895

Mar: 87 at Mottinger on 10/1914

Apr: 103 at Wahluke on 28/1934

May: 107 at Dallesport on 30/1986

Jun: 112 at John Day Dam on 18/1961

Jul: 118 at Wahluke on 24/1928

Aug: 118 at Ice Harbor Dam on 5/1961

Sep: 108 at Glenoma on 3/1988

Oct: 99 at Glenoma on 2/1987

Nov: 83 at Kosmos on 3/1949

Dec: 74 at Sedro Woolley on 5/1939

 

Interesting that the wintertime records are up in NW Washington.

Extreme Min Temp:

 

Jan: -42 at Deer Park on 20/1937

Feb: -40 at Deer Park on 9/1933 (same night Seneca hit -54)

Mar: -25 at Stockdill Ranch (Okanogan Co.) on 4/1955

Apr: -7 at Lake Keechelus on 1/1936

May: 2 at Mt. Rainier-Camp Muir on 5/2010 (ok, not official but credible)

Jun: 11 at Mt. Rainier-Camp Muir on 7/2012

Jul: 18 at Mt. Rainier-Camp Muir on 3/2012

Aug: 20 at Cascade Tunnel in 1896 (don't have the exact date but in NCDC database)

Sep: 11 at Newport on 25/1934

Oct: -5 at Bumping Lake on 31/1935

Nov: -29 at Ellensburg on 28/1896 (major late Nov arctic blast)

Dec: -48 at Mazama and Winthrop on 30/1968

 

Lowest max temp: -21 at Winthrop on Dec 30, 1968

Highest min temp: 89 at Kennewick on 2/1977 (iffy credibility).

 

24 hour precip:

 

Jan: 12.00 at Quinault RS on 21/1935

Feb: 10.50 at Quinault RS on 19/1968

Mar: 10.07 at Quinault RS on 6/1972

Apr: 8.92 at Cougar 6E on 12/1954

May: 5.52 at Quinault RS on 5/1975

Jun: 5.05 at Aberdeen 20NNE on 12/2000

Jul: 9.13 at Clearwater on 12/1972

Aug: 4.34 at Aberdeen 20NNE on 22/2001

Sep: 7.50 at Swift Creek on 28-29/2013 (during the Sept 2013 deluge)

Oct: 8.48 at Quinault RS on 10/1950

Nov: 15.20 at June Lake on 6-7/2006 (official)

Dec: 14.30 at Hoh RS on 4/2007

 

Monthly Precip:

 

Jan: 50.39 at Quinault RS in 1935

Feb: 46.20 at June Lake in 1999

Mar: 42.00 at June Lake in 1983

Apr: 22.50 at June Lake in 1991

May: 17.00 at Alpine Meadows in 2010

Jun: 15.10 at Skookum Creek in 2012

Jul: 13.69 at Clearwater in 1983

Aug: 15.07 at Quillayute in 1991

Sep: 26.50 at Swift Creek in 2013

Oct: 33.40 at Clearwater in 1975

Nov: 64.60 at June Lake in 2006 (state record)

Dec: 57.04 at Peterson's Ranch (near Cougar, "official" state record)

 

Year Max: 236.60 at June Lake in 1996 (calendar year)

Year Min: 2.61 at Wahluke in 1910

 

Wx Statman feel free to vet any of these, I'd be interested in your take. I haven't looked at the records themselves as closely as I have Oregon's, but this is a good place to start.

 

I'm pretty sure that Centerville reading in February 1895 is bogus. The real WA state record high for February is in the upper 70's from either 1968 or 1995. I remember looking into it but I never made a database...so I can't remember the details.

[wx_statman]

Ok...again these are not exhaustive in terms of the number of stations I went through. I went through all stations I reasonably expected to have state temp records, precip records or snow records. Monthly record highs/lows are documented by NCDC and for most months the numbers I cite here are NCDC values. For precip only the top 24 hour total is considered official by NCDC so other monthly values are unofficial but ones I consider reasonable and likely legitimate.

 

Max/Min/24 hour precip/Monthly precip record

 

Jan:

97 at Indio on 19/1971

-45 at Boca on 20/1937

25.83" at Hogees Camp on 22-23/1943

71.54" at Helen Mine in 1909

 

Feb:

100 at Thermal and Mecca on 27/1986

-43 at Boca on 7/1989

13.69" at Opids Camp on 22/1944

45.61" at Bowman Dam in 1904

 

Mar:

107 at Mecca on 21/2004

-35 at White Mountain on 10/1964

14.92" at Opids Camp on 2/1938

39.92" at La Porte in 1907

 

Apr:

118 at Volcano Springs on 25/1898

-30 at White Mountain on 27/1970

11.18" at Opids Camp on 4/1926

26.06" at Honeydew in 1963

 

May:

124 at Salton on 27/1896

-15 at White Mountain on 7/1964

5.97" at Fort **** on 5/1963

16.69" at Bowman Dam in 1915

 

Jun:

131 at Badwater on 29/1994

0 at White Mountain on 6/2007

4.87" at Crescent City on 7/1920

8.03" at Crescent City in 1937

 

Jul:

129 at Death Valley on 18/1998

12 at Bodie on 1/1997

4.74" at Crescent City on 27/1947

9.25" at Crescent City in 1947

 

Aug:

127 at Furnace Creek on 3/1993

12 at Bodie on 24/2000

4.69" at Twin Lakes on 12/1965

6.36" at Twin Lakes in 1965

 

Sep:

126 at Mecca on 2/1950

-5 at White Mountain on 23/1973

7.41" at Upper Mattole on 12/1895

11.17" at Klamath in 1977

 

Oct:

117 at Mecca on 2/1980

-20 at White Mountain on 29/1961

11.50" at Orick Prairie Creek on 29/1950

34.15" at Gasquet RS in 1950

 

Nov:

109 at Greenland Ranch on 5/1947

-28 at White Mountain on 17/1958

10.53" at Honeydew on 9/1971

45.96 at Gasquet RS in 1973

 

Dec:

100 at La Mesa on 8/1938

-40 at Termo on 9/1972

12.91" at Gasquet RS on 31/1951

45.22" at Bowman Dam in 1964

 

Annual

Wettest Calendar Year: 188.50" at Musalatt in 1983

Driest Calendar Year: 0.00" at Death Valley in 1929 (probably other years)

 

 

 

 

Those 1890's California max readings aren't legit FYI. They are from railroad maintenance camps and were not subject to any quality control. Specifically talking about places like Volcano Springs, Salton, Mammoth Tank, etc.

[wx_statman]

Good stuff overall Chris. I'm impressed.

[BLI snowman]

I'm pretty sure that Centerville reading in February 1895 is bogus. The real WA state record high for February is in the upper 70's from either 1968 or 1995. I remember looking into it but I never made a database...so I can't remember the details.

 

Highest reliable one I can find for WA in February is 77 from Downtown Walla Walla on 2/24/1986. Looks like Startup 1 E also hit 77 on 2/29/1968.

[wx_statman]

Highest reliable one I can find for WA in February is 77 from Downtown Walla Walla on 2/24/1986. Looks like Startup 1 E also hit 77 on 2/29/1968.

 

That Startup reading is what I think I remember. Been a few years though. Both 1986 and 1995 had readings well into the 70's in the lower Columbia Basin, but yeah I don't think there was anything above 77 on the WA side. Milton Freewater did hit 78 in 1995 just over the state line.

[Jesse]

Fascinating stuff guys. Keep it up!

[BLI snowman]

That Startup reading is what I think I remember. Been a few years though. Both 1986 and 1995 had readings well into the 70's in the lower Columbia Basin, but yeah I don't think there was anything above 77 on the WA side. Milton Freewater did hit 78 in 1995 just over the state line.

 

Actually, looks like Glenoma hit 78 on 2/27/1986 so that might be the highest. OLM was 73 that same day, so I can believe it. Which means Glenoma also has 3 monthly record highs for WA. 

[Jesse]

Actually, looks like Glenoma hit 78 on 2/27/1986 so that might be the highest. OLM was 73 that same day, so I can believe it. Which means Glenoma also has 3 monthly record highs for WA. 

 

Weird little spot. In the Cowlitz valley between Randle and the upper end of Riffe Lake. I've been through there lots of times on the way to various hikes. Must be an epic downsloping location.

[BLI snowman]

Weird little spot. In the Cowlitz valley between Randle and the upper end of Riffe Lake. I've been through there lots of times on the way to various hikes. Must be an epic downsloping location.

 

The Cascade foothill river valleys just do great with those adiabatic heat setups, when the lower valleys are under the inversion. Places like Darrington, Startup, Glenoma, Packwood, Oakridge. They've all posted some crazy heat numbers, especially from the inversion season. 

[wx_statman]

Actually, looks like Glenoma hit 78 on 2/27/1986 so that might be the highest. OLM was 73 that same day, so I can believe it. Which means Glenoma also has 3 monthly record highs for WA. 

 

Good catch. I remember going through Glenoma's records, but yeah I forgot about that one.

[wx_statman]

Weird little spot. In the Cowlitz valley between Randle and the upper end of Riffe Lake. I've been through there lots of times on the way to various hikes. Must be an epic downsloping location.

 

Great downsloping location. Actually same place as Kosmos, which also has the WA state record for November (83 in 1949). Only reason there are two towns is because they flooded Kosmos in the 1960's when they built Mossyrock Dam. The town was moved and renamed Glenoma.

[Jesse]

Great downsloping location. Actually same place as Kosmos, which also has the WA state record for November (83 in 1949). Only reason there are two towns is because they flooded Kosmos in the 1960's when they built Mossyrock Dam. The town was moved and renamed Glenoma.

 

Aha. I was wondering about the history there. 

[wx_statman]

Wx Statman you may be familiar with the following BC superlatives:

 

Record High: 112 at Lillooet and Lytton on Jul 17, 1941

Record Low: -74 at Smith River on Jan 31, 1947

24 hour precip: 19.26 at Ucluelet-Brynnor Mines on Oct 6, 1967

Month precip: 79.47 at Henderson Lake in Dec 1923

Calendar year precip (most): 373.19 at Henderson Lake in 1997

Calendar year precip (least): 2.80 at Ashcroft in 1938

24 hour snow: 57.0 at Tahtsa Lake West

Month snow: 271.5 at Mt Washington Resort (Vancouver Island) in Feb 1999 (same season Mt. Baker set US seasonal record)

Season snow: 963.0 at Revelstoke Mt. Copeland in 1971-72.

 

Values in degrees Fahrenheit and inches.

 

BTW wanted to add -

 

Average maximum, any month: 35.5C (95.9F) at Spences Bridge in July 1906.

 

This is also the Canadian record.