Highs Reach 70 Degrees, Metro Area in Rain Shadow

 FastCast—Sunday, Oct. 17 to Thursday, Oct. 21:

Saturday’s highs reached the upper 60s to mid 70s across the area as Western Washington remains in the “warm sector” between the warm front and cold front. Areas from Olympia to Everett will be in the rain shadow on Sunday, so expect occasional light rain and mostly cloudy conditions, with highs in the upper 50s. Mostly cloudy conditions continue on Monday, then we warm into the low-mid 60s with partly sunny skies on Tuesday. Expect highs in the 60s on Wednesday and Thursday as the next potentially prolonged rainy period moves in.

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Saturday was an unseasonably warm day across Western Washington, with highs topping out in the upper 60s to low 70s. Saturday’s highs are below.

The average high for October 16th is 60°, so most of the area was 5-13 degrees above average. For many locations, this was one of the warmest days of October, and likely one of the warmest days for the rest of 2021. 

Temperatures cool down from here, but will remain in the 50s to mid 60s over the next few days. Below is the Weather Underground forecast for Federal Way.

The biggest change to the forecast is that the metro area will be in the rain shadow on Sunday, lessening the rain from the incoming system to near zero. Clouds remain through late Monday, and by Tuesday, it’ll be partly cloudy. The next potentially long period of rain will start on Wednesday, with rain increasing on Thursday.

As I mentioned earlier, the metro area will be in the rain shadow for Sunday’s system. The system will also be falling apart as it moves inland, further diminishing the totals. Below is the UW rain forecast through Monday.

Expect 0.1 inches at most on Sunday, maybe up to 0.2” in isolated areas from approximately Seattle northward and Olympia southward. 0.3-1.25 inches are possible in Whatcom County, on the coast, and on the west slopes of the Olympics.

Uncertainty remains regarding the potential rainy period starting around the middle of next week. Stay tuned for more information!