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Weather

Summer Was Kalispell’s Hottest on Record

Average temperature of 66 degrees was 3.9 degrees warmer than normal

By Skye Lucas
A concert goer at Under the Big Sky sprays down guests in the heat. JP Edge | Flathead Beacon

The arrival of fall has sent shivers and smiles across the faces of Flathead Valley locals after what has been confirmed as the hottest summer on record.

From June 30 to Sept. 22, the average temperature in Kalispell was 66 degrees Fahrenheit, 3.9 degrees warmer than normal, making summer 2021 the hottest since records were first kept in the city beginning in 1948, according to statistics recently released by the National Weather Service (NWS). Temperatures reached a high of 101 on June 29 and July 31.

The record-breaking temperatures resulted from a number of factors, according to the NWS. Most notable was the strong ridge of high pressure that built over the Northwest Rockies and the U.S. West.

According to NWS incident meteorologist Bob Nester, air in a high-pressure area compresses as it descends, bringing warm and dry conditions. This can also help to explain why fire season started two weeks earlier than normal in the Lolo and Bitterroot National Forests over the summer.

On top of such conditions, southwest winds carried thick smog from southern Oregon and California fires into the Northern Rockies in the middle of the summer. After numerous hazy days in the valley, more smoke emanated from later fires in northern neighboring states like Washington and Idaho.

Smoke-filled skies were alleviated in early August when a closed low-pressure air system moved through the Northwest U.S. and the Flathead Valley. With low pressure, air rises, cools and condenses into storm clouds, precipitating the much-needed downpour during the first week of August.  

Precipitation amassed a total 3.65 inches, .13 of an inch less than average levels. The wettest day in Kalispell was Aug. 8 with .46 inches of rainfall. Showers continued into early August and helped to tame wildfire season, which for Nester made this past summer “pretty crummy, as far as smoke goes.”