A not-so white Christmas forecast for the Spokane region

Christmas is the season of many things. Enjoying time with loved ones, gift giving and making gingerbread houses probably all come to mind.

But “the most wonderful time of the year,” is often synonymous, at least in this area, with something else: snow. Unfortunately this year, Spokanites shouldn’t get their tinsel in a tangle, as it’ll be a Christmas miracle if any diamond-dotted flakes stick around long enough for Christmas dinner.

“It’s not (going to be) quite the white Christmas we all desire,” said Daniel Butler, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Spokane.

Christmas Day is expected to reach a high of 44 degrees in Spokane, he said, which makes this year the eighth warmest Christmas since 1881.

For comparison, the average temperature for Christmas in Spokane is 33 degrees. But the warmest recorded temperature on Christmas Day occurred in 1980 when the thermometer peaked at 53 degrees.

But who needs snow when you can have rain? Starting at 4 p.m. on Christmas Eve and spanning until the day after Christmas, Butler said the Spokane region can expect anywhere from one-third of an inch to two-thirds of an inch of rain.

After last week’s powerful windstorm that threw gusts of 75 mph at the Spokane International Airport, some may be rightfully concerned about a repeat.

“It doesn’t look particularly windy at all,” Butler said.

“Christmas Eve, we could see some gusts up to like 25 miles per hour out of the southwest, in the afternoon, but that is nothing compared to what we saw last Wednesday.”

Butler said this is the third consecutive year Spokane won’t see any snow for Christmas. Over the last 70 years, Spokane has been without snow on Christmas 26 times. Twelve of those 26 times have occurred after the year 2000.

For anyone who wants to build a snowman on Christmas Day, they may have to travel at least 100 miles away.

Butler said central Washington, including Methow Valley, Waterville and close to Leavenworth, could get a “dusting” on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. The east slopes of the Cascade Mountains could also get up to 2 inches of snow.

“It does look like the day after Christmas and the evening, as temperatures drop,” Butler said. “There is a chance (Spokane) could see a few snowflakes, but nothing will really stick at that point.”