Favourite Marches

[Summer8906]

1995 for variety. Overall sunny, dry and slightly warm but a lot of variation.

A rare genuine example of "cold zonality" in the first week (a term more often talked about than actually seen) with WNW winds and one system producing lying snow as far south as northern Hampshire. Also some cold sunny days in between the lows. A second system produced a further lying snow event in Sussex, I believe. It then turned warm and sunny around the 12th, then a cold NW-ly plunge with some showers, then more anticyclonic and warm, then a short cold period on the 27th, the anticyclonic and warm again. So definitely the best for variety.

In terms of settled, sunny weather we had several examples in the period between 1990 and 2014, particularly 1990, 1993, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2012 and (the first 20 days) of 2014, all of which were settled and sunny. This seemed to be a particularly good period; March has trended less settled again in the last 10 years or so.

2013, while not always pleasant, was certainly "interesting" for the historic cold.

2018 had the two cold snowy spells though a lot of very, very unpleasant weather indeed in between.

2023 has surely got to be the worst. I was around in March 1981 though don't remember being annoyed by it; if I was rather older I'm sure I would have been.

For scores, I'd say:

2023 1/10. Just about no redeeming features whatsoever

2022 7/10. Predominantly settled after around the 12th or so, but poor-ish start

2021 5/10. Think this was just bland, cloudy, mildish but rather dry.

2020 I will not rate, because I don't even want to think about this month.

2019 6/10. Poor first half, good second half

2018 3/10. The snow events were great but it was so awful for the rest of the time that it can't get a good rating overall.

2017 5/10. Poor first half, goodish second half, but less sunny than 2019

2016 6/10. Long settled coldish period with a very wet end

2015 6/10 Mostly dry but rather cloudy second half

2014 7/10 Very good first half, less settled second half

2013 5/10. A difficult one to rate in some ways, it was very dull and at times wet, but the historic cold was truly interesting.

2012 9/10 fine and sunny

2011 8/10 predominantly fine and sunny

2010 5/10 a month of two halves, cold sunny first half, dull wet second half

2009 8/10 another fine sunny month

2008 4/10 mostly unsettled and wet, some drier spells

2007 8/10 another fine sunny month

2006 7/10 mostly cold and sunny, poor final week

2005 7/10 often fine and sunny, some changeable spells

2004 5/10 a bit nondescript, cold sunny start then mild and changeable

2003 8/10 another fine sunny month

2002 4/10 mostly mild, cloudy and changeable, better final week

2001 4/10 unsettled with varying temps, some interesting cold spells

Edited February 22 by Summer8906

[Summer8906]

 Weather Enthusiast91 Indeed, with the switch over on the 19th. The first half of March 2018 did have some awful weather between the snow events, but the fine last 13 days that such a combination would produce would compensate.

[baddie]

 Summer8906 March 2005 was sunny?? It was even duller than March 2023 in my area, and looks quite dull in Hampshire too.

March 1995 is a forgotten classic, probably would be up there with 2012 in terms of favourites

Edited February 22 by baddie

[Summer8906]

 baddie I'm fairly sure I remember it being quite sunny, though this is based on memory, not stats.

From memory: it started cold and changeable, then became cold and sunny, then much warmer and still sunny. I distinctly remember two consecutive fine weekends on the 2nd and 3rd weekend, though the month ended cloudier and Easter was rather poor.

Poor months always wind me up, so the fact that March 2005 didn't (and left a good impression on me) must say something. Possibly had a lot of cloudy weather between 9am-5pm on Mon-Fri, which wouldn't have bothered me too much?

More generally it's been a while now since we've had a March I would rate at 8/10 or more, the last one being 2012. Before that I would have rated 1990, 1993, 1995, 1997, 2003, 2007, 2009 and 2011 all at 8/10 or more. Does seem to suggest that really good Marches are becoming rarer, and it definitely seems to be trending unsettled, with the first half in particular synoptically more like late autumn or early winter many years.

(In fact just about every month, bar April and - ironically - January, seems to be trending unsettled compared to the 90s/00s. It's also been a while since the last really good September, that being 2009, or 2014 if you could tolerate the cloudiness).

Edited February 22 by Summer8906

[MP-R]

If anything March is returning to more like what it should be. The warmer settled ones are more out of character.

I’ve always considered March more unsettled than February and often large parts of January. 

[Methuselah]

The Jarrow and Aldermaston Marches are my personal favourites. . . 

[baddie]

On 22/02/2024 at 12:52, Summer8906 said:

It's also been a while since the last really good September, that being 2009, or 2014 if you could tolerate the cloudiness).

Last year was a classic September, with that heatwave at the start, despite the second half being somewhat unsettled (Even then, there were many pleasant days). Before then, I would give 2021, 2020 and 2015 very good ratings too (Mostly dry throughout with some late warmth or early chill)

March and October are the two months that I value settled conditions the most