October Was Another Warm, Dry Month In Vermont

A forest in full autumn colors at mid-month near St. Albans,
Vermont. We had plenty of mild, sunny days during October
to enjoy the fall colors.

 The National Weather Service offices crunched the numbers for October and once again, Vermont had another warm, dry month.  

That, in general seems to be a trend this year. 

Though dry and warm, October didn't break any monthly records.  The month did not land in the top 10 list of toastiest or most arid. 

Generally speaking, most places across the state were roughly about two degrees on the warm side. Montpelier was an exception, coming in at four degrees balmier than average. 

To some people, October felt like it was warmer than it was. That's because the first half of the month was slightly cooler than normal. Since that's generally the warmer half of the month, it didn't feel so bad.

On average, the temperature really plunges during the second half of October. But this year, that didn't happen. It stayed warm, at least on most days.  That's especially true for October 25 and 26, which were so much hotter than normal that it skewed the entire month toward above average.  

Overnight lows both days were record warm, as was the high temperature on October 26. The 78 degrees in Burlington on October 26 was the warmest for so late in the season. The overnight low temperature in Montpelier October 26 was 62 degrees, which would have been a couple degrees warmer than average in July. 

Things were looking up at mid-month to end lingering dryness from summer was we had a very wet storm around October 13 and 14. But the rainfall sputtered, with not much falling through the second half of the month. 

Most places were pretty consistent being an inch to 1.5 inches below normal with rainfall. Even the summit of Mount Mansfield was on the dry side. Normally they collect 7.63 inches of precipitation up there in October. This year, the highest peak in Vermont only squeezed out 4.2 inches. 

On the very bright side, it was a spectacularly beautiful month for leaf peeping. The colors were tremendous, and we enjoyed plenty of sunny days to take in the splendor. 

Looking ahead, most of the first half of November looks quite warm in Vermont. Daily temperatures will be far above normal daily through the upcoming weekend, with record highs possible toward Saturday and Sunday. 

That's not to say the entire month will be warm.  I've seen Novembers that open like a never ending summer, but we're plunged into the depths of winter during the second half of November. That could happen this year, but of course there's no way of knowing quite yet.

I'd suggest getting your autumn chores done by mid-month, because like it or not, winter is on our doorstep. It's just a matter of time.