The cold winter of 2021-22 in Victoria

Meteorological winter is from December 1 to February 28.  Winter 2021-22 in Victoria was much colder than average.  It was also rainier and much snowier than average.  

This past winter was the coldest in the past 5 years, and the 4th coldest in the past 30 years.  The mean temperature at Victoria Gonzales was 4.6 degrees, which is 1.2 degrees colder than the 30-year average of 5.8.  The average daily maximum for winter 2021-22 was 6.7 degrees , while the average daily minimum was 2.5, both of which were 1.2 degrees colder than the 30-year averages of 7.9 max and 3.7 min.  December was the coldest month, with a mean of 2.9 degrees, making it the 9th coldest December in the past 124 years, and 2.7 degrees colder than the long term average.  While January and February were closer to average, both were about 0.5 degrees colder than normal.

The chart below shows the daily maximum and minimum temperatures at Victoria Gonzales during winter 2021-22, compared with the 30-year averages.  The temperature trend is distinguished by two arctic outbreaks, resulting in a major cold snap in late December, and a second less severe cold snap in late February.  The rest of the winter was fairly close to average.  The warmest day of the winter was recorded on the first day of the season, with a high of 12.7 C on December 1.  

Daily Max & Min Temps at Victoria, winter 2021-22

The December cold snap was one of the most severe in Victoria in recent memory.  The overnight minimum dropped as low as -9.7 C on December 27, which was Victoria's coldest recorded temperature in 36 years.  There were 4 consecutive days when the temperature did not rise above freezing, tied for the 7th longest such streak in the past 124 years in Victoria.  

Victoria Gonzales saw 14 days this winter with overnight lows below freezing, versus the long-term average of 9.6 days.  Eight of these days occurred consecutively, from Dec. 25 to Jan. 1, during the late December cold snap.  A further 5 days occurred consecutively during the late February cold snap.

Victoria received 302 mm of precipitation from December to February, 13% more than the normal winter precipitation of 267 mm.  December and January were both about 25% wetter than normal, but February was slightly drier than normal.  February would have been much drier than normal, if not for 36 mm of rain during the last two days of the month.  Up until Feb. 26, Victoria had received only about 15 mm of rain in February - about 25% of normal.  

Winter 2021-22 saw more days with measurable precipitation than the 30-year average.  There were 55 days with greater than 0.2 mm of precipitation versus the long term average of 46.4 days.  December saw 24 days with precipitation (versus the normal 16.8), January saw 18 days (close to the normal 16.6), and February saw 13 days (right on the normal 13.0 days).  There were also more heavy precipitation days during winter 2021-22 than normal: 5 days with more than 25 mm of precipitation vs. the long range average of 1.5 days.  

The chart below shows daily precipitation during winter 2021-22, and compares the cumulative precipitation with the 30-year average.  The winter was consistently wetter than average until about January 20.  This was followed by about 5 weeks with much drier than normal weather, then finally more heavy rain during the last 2 days of the season.   The wettest day of the winter was January 6, when 33.9 mm fell.  

Daily & Cumulative Precipitation in Victoria, winter 2021-22

The chart below compares the precipitation amounts in Victoria this winter with other locations in the region.  Thanks to the Olympic Mountain rainshadow, Victoria Gonzales is typically much drier than other locations in the region.  However, continuing a recent trend of the past couple of years, the differences were less than normal this winter.  Victoria had 113% of normal winter precipitation, while Victoria Airport had just 94% of normal and Vancouver had only 83% of normal.  Like Victoria, Seattle had above normal precipitation during winter 2021-22.  

  

Winter Precipitation in the Region, 2021-22

Victoria received 30 cm of  snow in winter 2021-22.  That's more than double the normal winter snowfall of 13.8 cm. Half of this winter's snow fell in December (16 cm), and most of the rest (12 cm) fell in January.  Victoria had 10 days this winter with at least 2 cm of snow on the ground.  That's 3 times the normal 3.2 days with snow on the ground.

Overall, winter 2021-22 was  close to normal for sunshine.  December and February were a bit sunnier than normal, while January was a bit cloudier than normal.

The table below shows the number of mostly sunny days (>80% of possible sunshine), partly cloudy days (20-80% of possible sunshine), and mostly cloudy days (<20% of possible sunshine) during winter 2021-22.  Overall, there were close to the normal amount of mostly sunny days, while there were more than average partly cloudy days, and fewer than average mostly cloudy days.  December had fewer than normal sunny days, but more partly cloudy days.  February had more than normal sunny days and fewer than normal mostly cloudy days.

2021 was a year of weather extremes in Victoria

2021 was an extraordinary year for weather in Victoria.  Below is a list of just some of the weather extremes experienced in 2021: 

• All-time hottest temperature ever recorded: 39.8 C on June 28, shattering the old record by almost 4 degrees.
• Warmest June on record, with mean temperature of 16.6 C.
• Coldest temperature recorded in 36 years: -9.7 C on December 27.
• Four consecutive days when the temperature did not rise above freezing (Dec. 26-29) – the longest stretch in 36 years.
• Biggest range of temperatures ever recorded in one year: 49.5 degrees C.

• The wettest year on record, with an estimated 953 mm of precipitation.  The old record was 944.6 mm in 1933.  
• There were 8 days with 25 mm or more precipitation, the most ever recorded at Victoria Gonzales.
• Wettest meteorological fall (Sept. 1 to Nov. 30), with 510 mm. The rainfall during those 3 months was equal to more than 80% of Victoria’s average annual rainfall.
• Not one, but two of the 10 all-time wettest days ever recorded in Victoria: 72.6 mm on November 15 (7th wettest) and 71.4 mm on October 28 (9th wettest).
• Tied for the driest July on record with 0 mm (there have been 6 other Julys with no rainfall).
• 3rd longest streak with no measurable rain: 53 days from June 15 to August 6.

Truly amazing!

The mean temperature for 2021 (10.6 C) was close to the 30-year average of 10.7 C, but there was a lot of variation during the year.

Six months had higher than normal temperatures (January, April, June, July, August, and November).  June was the warmest on record (16.6 C - a full 2 degrees above normal), while the summer overall was the 6th warmest in 123 years.  On the other hand, six months were cooler than average (February, March, May, September, October, and December).  

The hottest temperature of 2021 - and the hottest temperature ever recorded in Victoria - was on June 28, with a temperature of 39.8 C.  That was about 20 degrees above the normal temperature for the date, and nearly 4 degrees hotter than the previous all-time temperature record for Victoria.  There were 3 days in 2021 with daily maximums above 30 C, compared with the normal of 1.1 days.  There were 15 days with daily maximums above 25 degrees, compared with the average of 9 days.    

The coldest temperature of 2021 was -9.7 C on December 27.  That was the coldest temperature recorded at Victoria Gonzales since November 1985 - more than 36 years.  There were 13 days in 2021 when the temperature went below 0, significantly higher than the long-term average of 9.5 days.  Of those days when temperatures dropped below freezing, 6 occurred consecutively in February, while the other 7 occurred consecutively at the end of December.  Victoria also saw 4 consecutive days when the temperature did nor rise above zero - the longest such stretch since November 1985.

The chart below shows the daily maximum and minimum temperatures at Victoria Gonzales in 2021, compared with the long-term normal temperatures.  The most prominent variations from normal were the heat wave in late June and the cold snap in late December.  As a result of these extreme events, Victoria Gonzales experienced its largest range of temperatures ever recorded in a single year in 2021 - a range of 49.5 degrees between the 39.8 C on June 28 and the -9.7 C on December 27.  The average temperature range in Victoria is about 35 degrees, while the old record was 45.6 degrees in 1968.

2021 was the wettest year on record at Victoria Gonzales, with an estimated 953 mm of precipitation, 45% more than the long-term average of 656 mm.  The old record was 944.6 mm in 1933.  The record rain in 2021 followed 2020, which at the time was the wettest year in 20 years in Victoria, with 837 mm.   The fall was especially wet, in fact it was the wettest fall on record in Victoria, with 510 mm of rain from September 1 to November 30.  Victoria saw 633 mm - an entire year's worth of precipitation - in the last 4 months of the year.

The chart below shows daily and cumulative precipitation at Victoria Gonzales for 2021.   It was really only in the last 4 months of the year that precipitation was much above average.  In fact, the summer was the 6th driest on record, with just 16 mm of rain from June 1 to September 30.  This included a 53-day streak with no measurable precipitation from June 15 to August 6 - the third longest dry streak on record in Victoria. 

There were 145 days with measurable precipitation in 2021, compared with the normal of 132 days.  There were two days in 2021 that were among the 10 wettest days ever recorded in Victoria: 72.6 mm on November 15 and 71.4 mm on October 28.  There were 8 days with more than 25 mm of rain in 2021, the most on record at the Victoria Gonzales location, and far higher than the average of 2.9 days annually.  

The chart below compares annual precipitation at Victoria Gonzales in 2021 with other locations in the region.  Thanks to its rainshadow location, Victoria is typically drier than most other locations, and while that was still the case in 2021, the difference was not as much as it usually is.  That's because precipitation at Victoria Gonzales was 45% above normal in 2021, while it was just 8% above normal at the Victoria Airport (in North Saanich) 4%  above normal in Vancouver, and 11% above normal in Seattle.  Looking at this another way, the Victoria Airport typically receives more than 36% more precipitation than Victoria Gonzales, but in 2021 it got just 1% more.

Comparison of Annual Precipitation in 2021

Victoria received 44 cm of snow in 2021, nearly triple the average of 16 cm.  2021 was the snowiest year in Victoria since 1996.  There was 28 cm of snow in February, and a further 16 cm in December.  There were 10 days in 2021 with at least 2 cm of snow on the ground, 4 in January and 6 in December.  That is nearly 3 times the annual average of 3.5 days with snow on the ground.

Sunshine was slightly above average in Victoria in 2021 thanks to above average sunshine in June and July, as well as in March and April.  On the other hand, the fall months were cloudier than normal.  

The table below shows the distribution of mostly sunny, partly cloudy, and mostly cloudy days in 2021. There were 123 mostly sunny days, slightly above the average of 121.  There were 139 partly cloudy days compared with the average 132 days.  Finally, there were 103 mostly cloudy days, fewer than the average of 113 days.

Fall 2021: the wettest on record in Victoria

 Meteorological fall is from September 1 to November 30.  After a hot, dry summer, fall 2021 was the wettest on record at Victoria Gonzales.  Temperatures were close to average.

The mean fall temperature at Victoria Gonzales was 11.0 degrees, which is just slightly (0.2 degrees) below the 30-year average.  September and October saw below average temperatures, while November was warmer than average.

The chart below shows the daily maximum and minimum temperatures at Victoria Gonzales during fall 2021, compared with the 30-year averages.  The most significant variation from normal, was a period of cooler than average temperatures during the first half of October.  November was generally warmer than average.  The warmest temperature was 25.7 C on September 7.  The coldest temperature was 1.9 C on November 17.  

Daily Max & Min Temperatures in Victoria, fall 2021

Victoria received 510 mm of rain from September to November, making it the wettest fall on record at Victoria Gonzales.  That was more than double the 30-year average fall rainfall of 227 mm.  The old record was 444 mm in 1995.   All three months had higher than normal rainfall. 

Victoria had 55 days with measurable rainfall this fall, well above the normal 37.8 days.  There were 12 days with measurable rainfall in September (normal 7.8), 20 in October (normal 12.8), and 23 in November (normal 17.4).

The chart below shows daily precipitation during fall 2021, and compares the cumulative precipitation with the 30-year average.   Almost the entire fall was wetter than normal.  In addition the being the wettest fall on record, fall 2021 also saw 2 of the 10 wettest days ever recorded in Victoria: 72.6 mm on November 15 (7th wettest day on record) and 71.4 mm on October 28 (9 wettest day on record).

Daily & Cumulative Precipitation in Victoria, fall 2021

Summer 2021 was warmer, drier, and sunnier than normal in Victoria

Meteorological summer consists of June, July, and August.  Summer 2021 brought extraordinary 1 in 1,000 year heat in June, and a long dry spell from mid-June to August.  Overall, the summer was warmer, drier, and sunnier than normal this year in Victoria.  

The mean temperature this past summer at Victoria Gonzales was 16.5 degrees, which is 0.7 degrees above the 30-year average.  Summer 2021 was the 5th warmest in Victoria since record-keeping began at Gonzales Observatory in 1914.  June was the warmest on record in Victoria - 2 full degrees above normal, July was close to normal, and August was about 0.4 degrees above normal.

The chart below shows the daily maximum and minimum temperatures at Victoria Gonzales during summer 2021, compared with the 30-year averages.  What immediately stands out is the extraordinary heat wave in late June, when temperatures reached 39.8 C at Victoria Gonzales, beating the old all-time temperature record by nearly 4 degrees.  Climatologists estimated this to be a 1 in 1,000 year event for our region.  

There were 3 other more typical Victoria heat waves during the summer, lasting only a day or two and with temperatures reaching 28 C at the beginning of June, 29 C in mid-June, and just shy of 30 C in mid-August.  For the rest of the summer, temperatures were fairly close to the average.  Overall, the average daily high temperature this summer was 21.1 C (versus the normal of 20.0 C) while the average daily minimum was 12.0 C (normal 11.5 C).  Other locations in the region, away from the cooling effects of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, had significantly warmer average daytime highs.  For example, the average daily high temperature this summer at the University of Victoria was 24.0 C (compared with the normal of 22.6 C). 

Victoria Gonzales averages 38 days each summer when the temperature exceeds 20 C, but for summer 2021 there were 49 such days.  Similarly, there were 14 days above 25 C in summer 2021, double the average of 7.  There were 3 days when the temperature exceeded 30 C (all during the June heat wave), compared with the average of 1.1 days.  

Daily Max & Min Temperature at Victoria Gonzales, Summer 2021

Victoria received 16 mm of rain from June to August, which is just over one third of the normal for its summer rainfall of 47 mm. June and August saw about half of normal rainfall, while there was no measurable rain during July (the 7th time this has happened).  

Victoria had 7 days with measurable rainfall this summer, just under half of the normal 14.8 days.  There were 5 days with measurable rain in June, none in July, and 2 in August.  There was no measurable rainfall from June 15 to August 6 - a total of 53 days, making it the third longest such stretch since 1914.  By comparison, the average summer drought period over the past 30 years has been 26 days.

The chart below shows daily precipitation during summer 2021, and compares the cumulative precipitation with the 30-year average.   The first half of June was fairly close to normal, but this was followed by that 53 day stretch with no measurable rain.  The rainfall that broke the drought, 5 mm on August 7, was also the wettest day of the entire summer.

Daily & Cumulative Rainfall at Victoria Gonzales, Summer 2021

The chart below compares the rainfall amounts in Victoria this summer with other locations in the region.  As is typically the case, Victoria Gonzales had the lowest amount, with a total of 16 mm.  The Victoria Airport received almost 41 mm - more than 2.5 times as much as Victoria Gonzales, mostly due to higher rainfall in June.  Vancouver received 82 mm - more than 5 times as much as Victoria (Vancouver typically receives about 3 times as much rain in the summer as Victoria).  Seattle received 51 mm - more than 3 times Victoria's rainfall.  While Victoria only received about one third of its normal summer rainfall this year, the other locations received between 57% and 67% of normal.  Note that none of the locations received any significant rainfall in July (Vancouver received 0.5 mm while the other locations had no measurable rain).  

Rainfall in Victoria and the Region, Summer 2021

Summer 2021 was sunnier than normal.  June and July were both sunnier than normal, while August was slightly cloudier than normal.  Summer 2021 was the 5th sunniest recorded in Victoria (after 1951, 1958, 2018, and 1961).  It was sunny 73% of daylight hours this summer ( and 82% of daylight hours in July).

The table below shows the number of mostly sunny days (>80% of possible sunshine), partly cloudy days (20-80% of possible sunshine), and mostly cloudy days (<20% of possible sunshine).  There were 57 mostly sunny days this summer compared with the normal of 45 days.  Conversely, there were only 5 mostly cloudy days, compared with the normal of 12 days.  

Victoria records 53 days with no measurable rainfall - the third longest such dry streak on record

 Following the unprecedented heat wave in late June 2021, temperatures in Victoria returned to normal, but the dry sunny weather continued.  

Victoria Gonzales received no measurable rainfall in July.  That is the 7th time that Victoria has experienced a July with no measurable rain (the other times being 1914, 1922, 1926, 1958, 1984, 2018).  It is also the 12th time overall that Victoria has had a calendar month with no measurable rain.  

In all, there was no measurable rain recorded at Victoria Gonzales from June 15 to August 6 - a total of 53 days.  That makes it the third longest such dry streak recorded in Victoria over the past 120 years.  The longest dry streak was 63 days, from June 15 to August 16, 1926.  The second longest was 54 days from July 17 to September 8, 1986 - many residents will remember that year for the great weather at Expo 86.  

The chart below shows the longest dry streaks ever recorded in Victoria.  Of note, 4 of the 10 longest dry streaks occurred in the 1920s, which was the driest decade on record in Victoria for both average annual precipitation (601 mm) and average summer rainfall (34 mm for the June to August period). The past 10 years (2011-20) was the second driest decade for summers, with an average 36 mm of rain, which could indicate the beginning of a trend towards even drier summers that most climate models predict for our area as a result of climate change.  Conversely, none of the longest dry streaks was in the 1990s, which was one of the wettest decades (along with the 1930s) in Victoria, for both total annual precipitation and summer rainfall.  

Heat Wave June 2021: Victoria breaks its all-time high temperature record

The heat wave that Victoria and the surrounding region just experienced was truly historic.  Weather historian Christopher Burt described it as “the most anomalous regional extreme heat event to occur anywhere on Earth since temperature records began" roughly 150 years ago with the beginnings of modern meteorology.  Never before have so many all-time temperature records been broken by such a large margin in one region by a single event.  According to international weather records researcher Maximiliano Herrera, more all-time heat records were broken by at least 5 C in the June 2021 heat wave than in the previous 84-plus years of world weather recordkeeping.  A group of international climatologists estimated that this heat wave was a 1 in 1,000 year event for our region, and that even with continued climate change, it will remain a very rare event.

On June 28, 2021, Victoria recorded its all-time maximum temperature: 39.8 C.  That completely shattered the old record of 36.0 C set on July 11, 2007.  Many other locations in B.C., Washington, and Oregon also broke new all-time maximum temperature records.

Below are the June 25-29 daily high temperatures around the Victoria region:

The numbers are extraordinary.  Most locations broke their all-time temperature record on June 27, then broke it again on June 28.  Typically, when an all-time temperature record is broken, it might be by a fraction of a degree.  In this case, Victoria Gonzales beat its old record by 3.8 degrees, while Victoria Airport beat its old record by 3.1 degrees.  

The chart below shows hourly temperatures at Victoria Gonzales during the heat wave, compared with the average daily maximum and minimum temperatures in late June.  The peak temperature of 39.8 C at about 3 pm on June 28th was nearly 20 degrees C above the average!  Even the overnight lows on June 26th and 27th were higher than the average daily maximums.  

Some specific patterns are notable:

On June 26th, an on-shore sea breeze developed in the late morning and early afternoon that prevented temperatures at Gonzales from getting really hot.  The temperature peaked at 32.5 C between 11 am and noon, but then plunged to 23.4 C by 1 pm as the sea breeze kicked in.  

A sea breeze also developed on June 27th, but much later in the day.  The temperature peaked at 38.3 C between 2 pm and 3 pm.  It was still 35.9 C at 6 pm, but then a sea breeze developed and the temperature plunged 10 degrees in an hour, to reach 26.2 C at 7 pm.

The late evening, overnight, and early morning period between June 27th and 28th was remarkably warm.  After the early evening sea breeze on June 27th, the temperature warmed again, and was still a remarkable 28 C at midnight.  For most of the night, the temperature remained above 24-25 C, with just one hourly recording at 4 am  when the temperature dropped to 22.1 C.  By 7 am, the temperature was back up to an amazing 29 C, and it continued to increase sharply from there.

Also of note is the dramatic fall in temperatures on the evening of June 28th.  After hitting its peak of 39.8 C around 3 pm, the temperature remained a very hot 37.4 C at 6 pm, but then fell to 15.6 C at 6 am on June 29th - a drop of nearly 22 degrees C in 12 hours.  By the morning of June 29th, the heat wave was a distant memory, with a 10 am temperature of 16.2 C compared with 34.8 C at 10 am on June 28th.  That's a remarkable 18.6 degree C temperature change in 24 hours!  

In addition to these official Environment Canada weather stations, victoriaweather.ca (operated by University of Victoria climatologists) has a more extensive network of weather stations in the region.  Roughly 20 of these sites topped 40 C on June 28.  The table below shows the hottest of these in each municipality:

The chart below shows the annual maximum temperature at Victoria Gonzales over the past 120 years. The new record maximum set this year clearly stands out!

This next chart looks at the peak temperature for just the 10 hottest heat waves ever recorded at Victoria Gonzales:

Again, the June 2021 heat wave clearly stands out as something extraordinary.  All the previous heat records were in a fairly narrow band between 33 C and 36 C, while the extreme heat we just experienced was nearly 4 degrees higher!

As a result of the heat wave, June 2021 ended up being the warmest June on record at Victoria Gonzales.  If you look at the period from June 1 to June 24, prior to the heat wave, the mean temperature was 14.8 C, which was warmer than the 30-year average of 14.3 C, but not unusually so - the mean temperature for June 1-24 was warmer in 10 of the previous 30 years.  However, the heat wave bumped up the mean monthly temperature for June 2021 to 16.6 C.  That's 0.5 degrees warmer than the previous warmest June, when it averaged 16.1 C in 2015.  

So what caused this extraordinary event?  It was the result of an unusually large wave in the jet stream, which may have been caused by a tropical system interacting with the jet stream in the eastern Pacific. This created a strong upper-level high pressure ridge over the BC Interior, which results in sinking air and warm temperatures.

Victoria gets this situation fairly often during the summer, although this was already an unusually strong ridge – one of the strongest ever measured. The heat was then amplified by a low pressure trough approaching the coast at just the right time and location to maximize this event. The pressure differential created a strong southeasterly flow from the Interior out to the coast. The warm air from the Interior was heated even more as it crossed the Coast Mountains and compressed as it descended towards the coast (this is a phenomena like the hot Santa Ana winds in Southern California).

On a typical hot day in Victoria, rising warm air over the land draws in cool air from the Strait of Juan de Fuca, resulting in a cooling sea breeze – especially for areas near the Strait like Esquimalt, James Bay and Fairfield. Victoria Gonzales, being so close to the Strait, is often one of the cooler spots in the region on hot summer days, several degrees cooler than areas further inland. In this case, the strong northerly breeze that resulted from the flow of hot air from the Interior blocked the sea breeze from developing. As a result, Gonzales, with a maximum temperature of 39.8 C on June 28, was the hottest of all the Environment Canada recording sites in the region.

Another factor may have been the time of year when this happened. Many people seemed surprised about how early in the summer this heat wave occurred, given that we usually get our warmest average temperatures in late July or early August. However, if you look at the top 10 hottest days ever recorded in Victoria, 6 of them occurred between June 25 and July 1. It may be that the very long days and strong sun this time of year (close to the summer solstice) contributes to these heat waves.

So the unprecedented heat was the result of all these factors combining in just the right way to create the “perfect” extreme heat situation. This combination of events is unlikely to be repeated any time soon.

Given the extraordinary and historical nature of this heat wave, it is worthwhile looking at some of the other temperatures recorded elsewhere in B.C., Washington, and Oregon.

First, some maximum temperatures for the rest of Vancouver Island, with several locations topping 40 degrees C.  Port Alberni, as is typical, recorded the highest temperature on the Island, with 42.7 C.

Next, several locations in Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, Howe Sound, and Sunshine Coast.  Vancouver Harbour, right near the water and with westerly breezes, was one of the "cooler" spots at 33.8 C.  However, several locations in Metro Vancouver were at or above 40 C.  Temperatures were even hotter - around 43 C - in Abbotsford, Squamish, and Whistler.  

Both Seattle (42.2 C) and Portland (46.7 C) broke all-time maximum records.

Finally, in the B.C. Interior, several locations reached or exceeded the old Canada-wide all-time maximum record of 45.0 set in Middale and Yellow Grass, SK in 1937.  This included Lytton reaching an amazing 49.6 C to set a new Canadian national temperature record, and the record for the highest temperature ever recorded north of 45 degrees N.  

Spring 2021: Drier and slightly cooler than normal

 Meteorological spring consists of March, April, and May.  Spring 2021 in Victoria brought lower rainfall and slightly cooler temperatures than normal.  The spring started out cooler than normal in March, followed by a slightly warmer than normal April, and ended with a cooler than normal May.  Meanwhile, all three spring months were drier than normal in 2021.

The mean temperature this past spring at Victoria Gonzales was 9.8 degrees (ave. high 13.3 & ave. low 6.4), which is 0.3 degrees below the 30-year average of 10.1 C.  March was 0.6 degrees cooler than normal, April was 0.4 degrees warmer than normal, then May was 0.6 degrees cooler than normal.      

The chart below shows the daily maximum and minimum temperatures at Victoria Gonzales during spring 2021, compared with the 30-year averages.  The most obvious feature is the "heat wave" that Victoria experienced in mid-April.  Temperatures were in the 20s for 5 days, peaking at 24 C on April 17.  For much of the rest of spring, temperatures were generally below normal.

There were no days during Spring 2020 when the overnight low fell below freezing.  On average, Victoria sees just 0.6 days each spring with a low temperature below 0.  The coldest temperature of the spring was March 15 when the temperature dropped to 1.6 degrees.  The warmest day of the spring was 24.0 degrees on April 17.  That is unusually early for the warmest day of spring, in part thanks to a cool May.  Spring 2021 in Victoria saw no days with temperatures above 25 degrees, compared with the average of 0.5 25-degree plus days each spring.

Max & Min Temperatures in Victoria, Spring 2021

Victoria received 83 mm of precipitation during the March to May period.  That's about 72% of the 30-year average spring precipitation of 115 mm, making it the 25th driest spring at Victoria Gonzales in 108 years - in other words, drier than normal, but not exceedingly dry.  March saw 40 mm of rain - just 72% of normal, April saw 22 mm of rain -  just 65% of normal, and May saw 21 mm - 80% of normal rainfall.  

Spring 2021 also saw fewer than average days with measurable rainfall: just 27 days compared with the average of 33.6.  There were 9 days in March, 7 days in April, and 11 days in May with measurable rainfall.  

The chart below shows daily precipitation during spring 2021, and compares the cumulative precipitation with the 30-year average.   Cumulative rainfall stayed below average throughout throughout the spring.  March 24, with 15.4 mm, was the wettest day of the spring.  March 28, with 11.6 mm, was the only other day during the spring with more than 10 mm of rain.

Daily & Cumulative Rainfall in Victoria, Spring 2021

The chart below compares the precipitation amounts in Victoria this spring with other locations in the region.  While Victoria Gonzales typically receives the lowest amount of rainfall in the region, in spring 2021, Victoria Airport was actually drier.  While spring rainfall was 72% of normal at Victoria Gonzales, it was just 32% of normal at Victoria Airport and 44% of normal in Vancouver.  Looking at this another, Vancouver typically gets more than 3 times as much rain in the spring as Victoria does, but in 2021 it received less than double Victoria's rainfall.  Seattle received 52% of its normal spring rainfall.    

Regional Comparison of Spring 2021 Rainfall