Old Farmer’s Almanac Predicts Cold Spring for 8 U.S. States

The Old Farmer’s Almanac released its spring 2026 forecast this week, and it has bad news for one particular region of the United States. 

While most of the country is looking to be warmer than usual, a handful of states might not get the same respite from this cold winter the country has endured. 

West not so warm 

In a review of the map from the Old Farmer’s Almanac, one region stands out. 

The Pacific Northwest is nearly the only area where the word “cool” appears. 

In the case of western Washington and Oregon, this spring is expected to be cooler than usual and dry. 

The eastern halves of those states as well as all of Idaho and swaths of Montana and Wyoming and small parts of Nevada, Utah and Colorado are also expected to be cooler than usual and wet. 

The only other place on the map “cool” can be found is northern Michigan, both the Upper Peninsula and the northern tip of the Southern Peninsula. 

Better news for the rest of the U.S. 

Half of Wyoming and two thirds of Montana are expected to also be wet but warm while the southern three quarters of Nevada and Utah are expected to be warm and dry. 

The latter is also true of all of California and most of Colorado and Arizona. 

Down the middle of the country, South Dakota, North Dakota and Nebraska are also in the warm, dry category, as is almost all of the Southeast (North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Florida and Louisiana). 

That trend continues all up the Atlantic Coast to include eastern Virginia, all of Maryland and New England plus most of Pennsylvania. 

The lower peninsula of Michigan and northern part of Ohio and southern Indiana and Illinois are also expected to be warmer and dry while the rest of the Ohio Valley (southern Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia) are warm but wet. 

Where else will it be warm and wet? Most of Texas and Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arkansas, Missouri and Kansas. 

Most of Alaska is expected to be warmer and wet as are the western Hawaiian islands while the other regions of those states will be warm and dry. 

Welcome relief for many?

If the Old Farmer’s Almanac is right, this will come as welcome relief following a winter than has been long, cold and miserable throughout much of the United States. 

And will the Old Farmer’s Almanac be right? 

Well, back in October it predicted a cold, snowy winter from eastern Ohio down through West Virginia, Virginia and North Carolina, but the Northeast was expected to be mild and dry — just like Texas and the entire West Coast from the Mexican border up to Canada. 

All of the Ohio Valley was expected to be cold, as was Georgia and South Carolina according to the almanac. 

While warm and dry might be ideal following a winter that started in November in some places, a wet spring lends itself to planting trees and shrubs and perhaps getting an early start on those summer flowers and vegetables. 

And as far as planting goes, the almanac also has some updated advice.
According to the book, folks in California, Arizona, New Mexico, the southern Midwest and much of New England can expect to be able to have their last frost earlier than usual, but those states identified above as having a cooler spring will want get a later-than-usual frost.

The latter is also true for much of Florida.