First Dry Veterans Day Since 2004

For the first time in nearly a decade, a rain-free Veterans Day is in the cards.

High pressure overhead will force a developing cold front to remain over the Pacific tomorrow, treating Seattle to a sight unseen since 2004—a dry Nov. 11.

For the past eight years, the day has been awash in rain, with last year’s 0.60 inches the wettest of the bunch. (The all-time mark for soggiest Veterans Day belongs to 1973, when 1.48 inches fell.) This time around, though, the stars have finally aligned to give the beleaguered holiday a break—with some warmer temperatures to boot.

Dry winds coming off the Cascades will raise the mercury nearly ten above normal Monday afternoon, allowing Seattle to flirt with the 60-degree mark for just the second time this month. Closer to the foothills, places like Enumclaw and North Bend should do a notch better, rising to the low 60s under partly sunny skies.

With the warm winds actually cranking up late tonight, the balmy weather will already be in place by tomorrow morning, with most of the metro area sitting comfortably in the low 50s by sunrise. In fact, the coolest readings in the next 24 hours will be from now through midnight as temperatures dip into the upper 40s.

After a much-deserved dry and sunny Veterans Day, rain quickly spreads back into the area early Tuesday, courtesy of the burgeoning cold front offshore. While wet enough to make itself noticed, the front won’t be anything special by November standards, dropping just a quarter-inch of rain across the metro area. Cooler air will also trickle in as the moisture departs, lowering maximum temperatures to the mid 50s.

Scattered showers dot the region on Wednesday, with most places picking up a scant tenth of an inch or less. A renewed round of rainfall then sweeps across the area on Thursday, with another quarter-inch in the gauge and highs falling to near 50 degrees.

The remainder of the week looks cool and damp, with more rain plaguing the area as we head into the heart of another reliably wet November.

At least, for once, the same can’t be said of Veterans Day.