PTguide - Port Townsend and East Jefferson County, WA

Port Townsend weather has lows in the teens and highs in the 70's. November through February have the coolest temps, sometimes below freezing, but not often. July through September are our warmest months, and morning fog begins in late summer. Daily wind speed can average 10 miles per hour with some days blowing over 30 mph. It is rare that we don't have some wind. Cool evenings anytime of year and we are affected by the maritime influence which keeps temps moderate.

Precipitation in the months of November through June average 2-3 inches and less than 1 inch per month in late summer. We do have many more sunny days than most of Western Washington, and it's not infrequent for us to have sunshine here while Seattle or Port Angeles have clouds and rain. (Bring a raincoat just in case). We sit in the Olympic Mountain "rainshadow" - it's what keeps Port Townsend and Sequim relatively dry.

Check out the Port Townsend Web Cams here >>

Current Weather

Jefferson County Courthouse Weather Station - located in the Courthouse clocktower Uptown.
Port Townsend Radio Tower Weather Station - located Uptown Port Townsend
South Whidbey Island - near Clinton Ferry Dock, South Whidbey Island.
Port Townsend Paper Mill - located on Mill Road

Cliff Mass Weather Blog

Marine Weather and Forecasts

WSDOT Weather for Admiralty Inlet
National Weather Service Forecast
Wind Speed and Direction on Ferry Routes
AccuWeather Forecast
Chimacum, WA Elementary School Real Time Weather
Weather Channel for nearby Whidbey Island
Weather Underground for PT from Jefferson County Courthouse
Port Townsend Rainfall Archive (from 1998)

Tides and Currents

Visual Tide/Current Predictor for Port Townsend
WWW Tide/Current Predictor for Port Townsend
WWW Tide/Current Predictor for Admiralty Inlet, Washington Current
NOAA OPS Division for Port Townsend - Data from WA State Ferry Dock in Port Townsend
Sunrise Sunset Calendar - Select Port Townsend and the month and year.

Olympic Peninsula Mountain Weather

NWS Current Forecasts for Olympic Mountains
NWAC Avalanche Forecasts

Climate Information

Western US Historical Climate Data
Washington State Climate Data

To the right is a precipitation map showing the relative rainfall in inches on the Olympic Peninsula. You can see why the western peninsula has a rainforest...

Here's a great local study on the Olympic Rainshadow. You can read about the effect of the Olympic Mountains on the climate of the Peninsula which is quite dramatic from east to west.

Emergency & Disaster Preparedness

PT Disaster Preparedness Resources

Recent Earthquake Activity in the PNW
Pacific Northwest Seismic Network

Heavily influenced by its coastal location and the orographic (having to do with mountains and ranges) influence of the Olympic Mountains, East Jefferson County is fairly dry compared to the rest of the Olympic Peninsula. The proximity of the Olympic range to the Pacific Ocean creates moderate temperatures with few extremes. Port Townsend receives about 16-18 inches of rain per year.

Below is a precipitation map for all of Washington State.