Summer arrived super early this year. We have hit or surpassed the 90 degree mark 5 times so far this spring with the first occurrence happening back on April 28th when we hit 91°. We reached it 3 days in May with two of those days topping out at 93°F. I remember those days well as we cooked in our classrooms at work, and then just last week we hit 91 on Tuesday. Overall May was a very warm month ending 4.2° above normal!

The more concerning issue has been the extremely dry weather. Since May 6th, we have only seen a sprinkle here or there, but nothing widespread. If we don’t see some good soaking rains soon, it could be a really tough summer. Salem ended the month of May with only 27% of our usual rainfall! Adding more evidence to the case, check out this map showing total rainfall over the past 30 days.

Western Oregon is one of the driest locations on this map. Heck, even Death Valley, California has picked up more rain than us during this span of time, so you can see why we could be in trouble if we don’t get some good rain soon.

Extended Forecast

We will see if it actually rains next weekend, but for now enjoy the warm and dry weather the best you can. 🙂