Washougal, WA 97251 Frost Dates
97251, near Washougal, WA: the frost window
Around 03/16 is the usual last spring frost, about 200 days away. Fall's first freeze usually shows up around 11/20, roughly 250 days after the last spring frost.
The USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Washougal in Zone 9a (20 to 25°F average annual minimum); frost dates are NOAA's 1991-2020 station normal, not this year's forecast.
Stretching the season past the first frost
Washougal's growing season runs out in roughly 12 weeks — a cold frame or greenhouse kit is the usual way to keep cool-weather crops going past the first frost.
Why 03/16 isn't a guarantee
03/16 is the middle of 30 years of NOAA records, not a promise. Getting tender plants in by 02/18 carries real risk, frost has hit that late in about 9 of 10 years here. Wait until 04/12 and only about 1 year in 10 sees frost after that.
Washougal against the rest of the dataset
Washougal's growing season runs about 250 days, ranking 7,486 of 40,283 US ZIP codes measured here, longest to shortest. Within WA, it ranks 106 of 700.
Learn more
Two guides worth reading on 97251: local microclimates, on what one yard in Washougal can differ from the 97251 normal, and zone vs. frost date, on why Zone 9a and Washougal's frost date answer different questions.