Quick Weather Weird Update: Odd Vermont/NY Temperature Contrast Continued Today

Weird and big temperature contrasts continued Wednesday
as this National Weather Service map indicates. At 2 pm
Wednesday, it was in the 60s in much of northern
New York, but only in the upper 30s in parts of
Vermonts Connecticut River Valley.

 Yesterday I posted about a weird Vermont temperature contrast that had been expected yesterday with high temperatures only in the 30s in southeastern Vermont to near 60 in the northwest tip of the state.

The actual contrast did develop, but it wasn't as extreme as forecast, because clouds from the east came in later than expected.  

Today made up for it. It goes to show how important sunshine is once spring hits to boost temperatures. 

A tongue of clear skies worked into northern New York late this morning and afternoon. The sunshine briefly appeared in the Champlain Valley, too. So it was another topsy turvy day. 

Under the sunshine, it was in the low to mid 60s in New York's St. Lawrence Valley. In perennial cold spot Saranac Lake, New York, in the Adirondacks, it was 59 degrees.

Here in Vermont, we reached some pleasant low and mid 50s in the central and northern Champlain Valley. But the further south and east you got, the colder dirt got. By the time you were in the lower Connecticut Valley, you were lucky if it was as "warm" as 40s degrees.

This state of affairs will continue - sort of.  Temperatures are forecast to even out. But rain traveling along a slow cold front will drench southeastern Vermont with a half inch to an inch of rain. In the far northwest, it might not rain at all. If it does, it'll probably be less than a tenth of an inch. 

A storm off the coast Friday will make it windy everywhere in Vermont. But as it stands now, it looks like western Vermont will see no precipitation, while a little snow might dust the Connecticut River Valley. That's an uncertain forecast, but something to keep an eye on.