Dave’s Weather Outlook

Is El Nino finally fading away starting in April?

I did a lot of camping as a kid. My family would most often go to Fall Lake Campground near Winton. This year, I’ve got a hankering to check out the Babbitt Campground and RV Park. Birch Lake is beautiful, of course. I’ll have to hope the one tent site is open when I’m ready to go. The only RV I’d be able to afford would be of the quality of Cousin Eddie’s in the Christmas Vacation movie.

It’s a good thing the campground doesn’t open until May because the weather has taken a turn for the cooler after such a long El Nino winter. The folks at the popular weather almanacs have been predicting the end of El Nino for months now, but “The Child” keeps popping back with warmer than normal temperatures. This despite the persistent insistence on a cool down coming. Well, in April, it may finally come true. Just after the first day of official spring, the weather pattern shifted back towards winter.

For April, the long-range forecasters this time around are saying the Upper Midwest will average one degree cooler than normal. Precipitation should be near normal. If it comes as rain, that’ll be two inches. If it comes as snow like it finally did in late March, it could be 20 inches.

April 1 to 3 should be snowy and cold. April 4 to 6 should be cool with a shot at rain and snow mixes. The 7 to 12 should be sunny and warm. April 13 to 18 should be warm enough for a round of thunderstorms. April 19 to 30 could be cooler and fairly showery.

Now that El Nino may have finally broken, normal conditions should be here through late summer. After that, La Nina, the opposite effect of El Nino will come. That could make for a doozy of a winter next year. Stay tuned for updates!