Above normal temps expected for western Washington within 2 weeks

The bitter cold and areas of snow have western Washington reminded that we are still very much in the thick of winter.

Gusty winds are also leaving their mark in the form of wind chills well below zero degrees in parts of our area, wind advisories, and warnings about downed trees along with other potential damage. A large tree fell on a home in Federal Way in the last week.

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What comes next is top of mind as we all try and warm up. The latest eight-to-14-day outlook for temperatures from the National Weather Service shows a 50-60% chance of above normal temperatures in the next two weeks.

That would be some good news for Whatcom County where wind chills were around -20 degrees for a time on Friday.

When it comes to what is expected to fall from the sky, government forecasters expect a 40-50% chance of above normal precipitation. Hopefully, that will add to the snowpack recharge we just got.

When it comes to the next several months, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said we will continue with a 50-60% chance of above normal temperatures. As for rain or snow, there are equal chances of more or less precipitation than normal.

The bottom line is that we still have a lot of winter left to go.