PENDLETON – Last year’s scorching hot temperatures and lack of precipitation took a heavy toll on the area, but thankfully spring and the beginning of summer have been much more normal.

Eastern Oregon has yet to reach 90 degrees this year with the last triple-digit day coming Aug. 15, 2021 when it hit 101 in Wallowa County and Aug. 3, 2021 in Union County, according to National Weather Service Assistant Forecaster Ann Adams out of Pendleton. Weather that warm is not expected in the area in the near future.

Adams did not see 90 degree temperatures for the region in the next several days, and it may not happen until a further warm-up is expected to begin next month. With forage enjoying strong growth in May and into June cooler temperatures are always welcome and can potentially help push back wildfire season.

There is still time before any new records will be set for the latest day on the calendar that the first 90 degree day comes to Wallowa or Union counties. In Wallowa County, the latest occurrence is July 30, 1907. Union County’s is far more recent as it happened on July 24, 2011.

Last year’s extreme temperatures had an impact on seemingly everything, even baby hawks were falling up to 60 feet from their nests to either death or injury to try to escape the oppressive heat.

Currently, temperatures in the region are ranging from high 70s to mid 80s, which is close to normal for this time of year. The biggest difference between this year and last is avoiding the significant high pressure system that dominated much of summer 2021.

“Last year was a bump away from the normal patterns,” Adams said. “We had a larger, stronger, dry-air mass over the Northwest and it stayed put last year. It persisted over our area and heated up the entire West. We just happened to be under the deepest part of that ridge.”

Cloud cover and above-average precipitation has kept things cooler in the region. The northern section of Union county is not under drought conditions while Wallowa County and the remainder of Union ranges from abnormally dry to severe drought. The increased precipitation is not expected to last the rest of the summer.

“Northeast Oregon has a 40% chance of being above normal in temperature over the next three months,” Adams said. “Precipitation will be below normal rainfall over that same time period.”

Temperatures over the next few days in Wallowa and Union counties are expected to be in the low- to mid-80s. That is not the same for much of the rest of Oregon as 100-degree temperatures are likely.