The icebox returned in February with an average temperature over 11 degrees below normal, tying it for the 9^th coldest February on record. Lows dropped below zero on 15 days, well above the normal of 6 days and tying it for 5^th most in a February. Highs held in the single digits 3 times and only warmed above freezing on 5 days. The 9.2 inch snow total was about what one could expect out of a typical February, but most of the came on the 1^st with a 5 inch dumping. There were 7 more days with measurable snowfall after that, all but one recording less than an inch. 

While March would finish above normal for its average temperature, to say March was a warm month would be misleading. Much of the warmth came in an 8 day stretch, from the 9^th through 16^th.  Highs topped 60 on 6 of those days, with a max of 71 on the 13^th. This was one of the earliest 70 degree days on record for La Crosse (4^th) and well ahead of the average which is April 9^th.  However, temperatures nosedived after the mid month warm up, with highs mostly in the 40s or cooler. To further illustrate the roller coaster that was March, highs topped 60 on 7 days, but failed to warm above 40 on 10 days. March looked like it might be a very dry month with only one day of accumulating precipitation – for only a mere 0.01 inches - through the 21^st. Snow then fell on 4 consecutive days, accounting for the entire month’s total of 9.9 inches. 

Typical for a spring month, April experienced the wild swings in temperature that occurred in March. There were more days with highs in the 40s and 50s (13) than in the 70s and 80s (10). Ironically, the 82 degree high for the month came on the 1^st.  It was also well ahead of the normal first 80 degree day in a year (April 29^th). Over 4 inches of precipitation fell in April, almost 1 ½ inches above normal. However, nearly 2/3rds of that total came on the 7^th and 9^th, with only around an inch then falling through the end of the month. April did squeeze out some more snow though with minor accumulations on the 9^th and 22^nd (total of ½ inch for month). 

Not much consistency in temperatures for May either, although it did manage to finish above normal. Highs warmed to 80 degrees or higher 10 times, but couldn’t manage to get out of the 50s and 60s on 12 days. The wet trend would continue, but a bit more spread out compared to April. Measureable rain fell on 16 days, with 5 of those recording over 3/4rds of an inch. The 6.41 inch monthly total made it the 12^th wettest May on record. 

On the whole, March, April and May would finish amongst the top 20 spring’s for temperature and precipitation (17^th warmest and 18^th wettest respectively).

The first half of August averaged at or above normal temperatures, with a warm stretch of 3 consecutive 90 plus degrees on the 14^th through 16^th. It cooled down after that, mostly below normal, including 3 days where the high could not climb out of the 60s. On the whole though, August finished normal for its monthly average. Measurable rain fell on 10 days in August, typical for this late summer month. However, the bulk of that came on one day – with the 28^th accounting for over 50% of the monthly total. Overall, August was around 1 ½ inches below normal.

With 3 consecutive months of below normal precipitation, the summer came in just over 10 inches for rainfall, nearly 2 inches below normal. Temperatures were close to a typical summer. 

September started very warm as highs topped out in the upper 80s to around 90 the first 6 days. It was the second warmest start to a September in La Crosse, averaging 80.2 degrees during that period (1960 was warmer at 82.3 degrees). Aside from a few cooler days at mid-month and right at the end, it would stay warm and finish as the warmest September on record at 69.3 degrees. Highs were 80 degrees or higher 18 times, well above the average of 7, and second highest for September. In addition, highs only failed to crack 70 four times, below the average of 12 and tied for 4^th fewest. Interestingly, there were no record high temperatures for the month, and only one highest low. September was below normal for precipitation, with most of it falling in the first half of the month. After the 18^th, there was only one day with rain, and that only amounted to 0.16 inches on the 28^th.  

November continued the warm conditions of September and October and helped round of the fall months as the 2^nd warmest on record for La Crosse at 55.1 degrees. It was the 3^rd warmest November on record at 43.1 degrees. At or above normal temperatures occurred on all but 5 days…exceeding 60 degrees or greater for highs on 8 days. Low temperatures at or below freezing only occurred on 12 days…tied for second least in a November…and well below the average of 20 such days. Precipitation was right around normal for November. The bulk came after the 15^th with over 3/4rds of the monthly total falling during the latter half. The first measurable snow fell in November - 0.7 inches on the 20^th. This is over a week later than the average first measurable snow in La Crosse /Nov 11^th/. 

December rounded out 2015 very mild and wet, setting records for both. Daily temperatures were above normal on all but one day (the 19^th) with highs reaching or exceeding 40 degrees on 16 days (average is only 6). The average low temperature of 29.1 degrees is actually the normal average high temperature for December. Lows never dropped into the single digits – which has only happened 4 other times. The mild temperatures kept most of December’s precipitation as rain, with the total of 4.93 inches crushing the previous all-time record for the month. That total is also the wettest out of any of the winter months. The 13^th and 14^th accounted for a bulk of the total with 3.16 inches on these two days. Less than 2 inches of snow fell through the 27^th, but then a winter storm swept across the region on the 28^th, dropping nearly 10 inches on the 28^th and 29^th. This dumping brought the monthly total more in line with its normal.