October 2018 Saint Cloud Weather Summary

Saint Cloud October 2018 Weather Summary  

The calendar said October, but for much of Minnesota in the first half of October, the temperatures said Halloween or even early November. After a brief climb to 72 degrees on October 3, the high temperature remained colder than 50 degrees on 12 of the following 14 days. That included temperatures that tied daily record cold highs on the 11th (36) and the 14th (37). Between the 23rd and the 29th, there were 4 other days on which the high failed to top 50 degrees.

That ended producing an October average temperature of 50.3 degrees at the St. Cloud Regional Airport, 3.7 degree colder than average and the 14th coldest of the 138 Octobers on record in St. Cloud.

The reason for the cool weather was often being stuck in a cold rain. St. Cloud picked up 3.91 inches of rainfall, 1.42 inches above average. 2.91 inches of rain were picked up between October 3 and October 10. In the later cold period 1.01 inches fell between October 25 and October 30. Several of the cool high days were during this period, but the average temperature was kept up by clouds, rain and fog. The second period had most of its days milder than average, thanks only to the mild lows. This led to the average October high being 50.3 degrees, 6.0 degrees colder than average, and the 6th coldest October high on record.

The 14 days with measurable rainfall were double the October average. Even with all of the rain, St. Cloud failed to break any records. The 1.71 inch of rainfall on October 9 was half an inch short of the daily record precipitation.

The rain was even heavier to the northeast of St. Cloud with over 5 inches of rain from Brainerd and Aitkin into the Arrowhead

Overall, this was the coolest October since 2009. The coldest October in St. Cloud history was in 1925 when the average temperature was only 35.8 degrees. October 2002 was the second coldest October with an average of 38.8 degrees.

The growing season came to an end with a hard freeze and a low of 28 degrees on October 4. This was about a week late for the median date of the first frost, but nearly right on time for the first 28 degree temperature. The last frost date in the spring was April 28, so the growing season between frost days in St. Cloud was a total of 158 days, among the longest 10% of growing seasons, despite the slow start.

    October 2018 Statistics