Albany residents out and about on the coast to welcome first day of summer with hottest December 1 on record

It was the hottest-recorded opening day of summer in Albany on Monday, with the airport’s temperature reading of 35.9C almost five degrees higher than the previous December 1 record set 75 years ago.

The previous December 1 record, was set in 1950, with a reading of 31.1C.

The Albany Airport weather observation station recorded its record-setting top temperature at 2pm on Monday, with the temperature steadily dropping to 30C by 3pm.

The average maximum temperature for the first day of summer in Albany, according to the Bureau of Meteorology, is just 21.3C, with the coldest December 1 on record 15.1C in 1935.

Albany residents did not hesitate to get out along the coast and enjoy the warm weather and clear skies after a cold winter in the Great Southern.

Binalup/Middleton Beach and Ellen Cove were busy around midday, with locals of all ages stopping by for a dip to cool off, sit on the sand and enjoy the sun, or jump off the pontoon in the Ellen Cove swimming enclosure.

The mercury dropped to 22C on Tuesday, and Wednesday had the same maximum temperature forecast, with the rest of the week expected to follow the same mild but warm pattern.

Despite the top temperature being cooler than Monday’s, the weather has taken a turn for the warmer as summer gets under way.