Finally.....the First Freeze in Parts of Western Washington

It is the end of November, and until a few days ago, large areas in western Washington had not yet to experience temperatures of 32F or below.   But that situation is now over....frost has returned to Seattle, Bellingham, and some other locations near Puget Sound.   

It is interesting to plot the average day of first freeze over the region (NOAA map, below).

Over the higher elevations east of the Cascades, the first freeze generally occurs in September. 

 October brings freezing conditions to the lower elevations in eastern Washington and lower elevations away from the water over western Washington.  

Early November beings freezing over much of the lowlands of Western Washington and Oregon, and late November for some Puget Sound locations and coastal Oregon.  

December on the southern Oregon coast. 

Consider recent temperatures at a few local reporting stations during the past few months.

At Seattle, yesterday (Thursday) morning was the first to hit freezing (horizontal blue line).  Same with Bellingham.   Seattle and Bellingham are warmed by the proximity to mild water surfaces.

In contrast, Olympia, which is distant enough from the water to have a more "continental" climate, several days have reached freezing during October.

But if you really like early frosts, head over to eastern Washington, where the warming influence of the Pacific and Puget Sound are greatly attenuated.  

For example, in Yakima, from late September forward, many days this fall have hit the freezing mark and below.

Similar situation in the Tri-Cities (Pasco shown below).

What is the frost forecast for the next week?

High pressure will building over the eastern Pacific and western WA locations like Seattle will progressively warm, so no frost in the forecast and progressive warming (an ensemble of many forecasts is shown below).

In contrast, cold, dense air will remain within the Columbia Basin for a long time, with Yakima enjoying temperatures in the upper 20s for a while.

Good for making ice wine perhaps.😀😋