July 2022: A persistent monsoon flow bringing tropical air northward finally paid off for the Front Range. Precipitation totals were well above normal with local amounts near 4 inches for the month. My total was 3.72 a full inch above normal. This puts the month in the upper third of rainiest Julys. With all the clouds and rain, temperatures were cooler than normal. While Denver sweltered in the 100s on several days we were basking in the 80s. A good rule of thumb is the temperature drops 6F for every thousand feet. Great for us now, but we’ll get payback in the winter.

Temperature: A cool month with an average high of 74F and an average low of 49F. This gave us a month 1 degree below normal. Afternoon highs were below normal but lows were above normal attributed to the many cloudy days. Highest high was 84F on the 9th and the lowest high was 58F on the 28th after a pretty strong cold front. Lowest low was 42F on the first.

Precipitation: Raindrops fell on 23 of the 31 days of the month. This included trace amounts on up to 1.2 inches on the 6th. Six days had between a quarter to half an inch. Total rain was 3.72 inches; normal is 2.68 inches.

Winds: Not known for its winds, this July had no days of 40+mph.

Other Features: The plains had many days over 100 degrees and were generally drier than the mountains. Colorado had a few fires but they remained small and were quickly controlled. Love the wet conditions.

Outlook for August: Summer starts to get tired in August. Average highs begin to fall as the days get shorter and we approach fall. A typical August day has a high/low combination of 74F/45F. Precipitation remains high with over 2 inches. This depends, of course, on the persistence of the monsoon. Right now the long range models are indicating that the monsoon will continue through most of the month. Temperatures will be about normal with slightly above normal precipitation.