Cold to stick around on Peninsula

PORT ANGELES — Monday’s snow might not be the last snow of the year.

The North Olympic Peninsula is expected to see a cold snap through the rest of the week, with temperatures reaching into the 20s during nights and climbing to just above freezing during the day, said Josh Smith, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Seattle.

The cold snap is caused by the same Fraser River outflow from Canada that caused more than 2 inches of snow to fall Monday in the Port Angeles area, he said.

Cold air from the north has settled in Washington state and is expected to stay through the week, he said.

“That Fraser air came down,” he said. “It’s just going to stick around for awhile.”

The Fraser River is the longest river within British Columbia — originating at Fraser Pass near Blackrock Mountain in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for 854 miles into the Strait of Georgia at the city of Vancouver, according to the Canadian Heritage Rivers System.

He expected the colder temperatures to become more established over Monday night into today.

More snow possible

Then, looking toward the weekend, there is a chance of snow.

Moisture is traveling up from the south, which could cause snow to start Thursday going into Friday, Smith said.

“The hardest areas for being hit look to be in southwest Washington, but there’s still a chance up on the North Olympic Peninsula as well.”

He said it’s still too early to tell with any certainty if there will be more snow on the North Olympic Peninsula.

Port Angeles and Joyce were among a few areas in western Washington that got snow Monday.

Other areas included Whatcom and San Juan counties, Smith said.

There were reports of more than 2 inches of snow in the Port Angeles area Monday morning.

Officials on the West and East ends of the Peninsula said they hadn’t seen any snow.

While it might feel like there’s more snow than usual this year, it’s actually been close to average, Smith said.

“It’s not too far from average,” he said. “It just feels like that since the last two years we haven’t seen very much.”

The past two years were El Niño years, while this year is a weak La Niña year, he said.

La Niña years generally have colder temperatures and more precipitation during the winter, contributing to slightly more lowland snow.

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Reporter Jesse Major can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56250, or at jmajor@peninsuladailynews.com.