Parkgoers are excited for the warmer weather to come in as spring has finally arrived.

CLARKS SUMMIT, Pa. — Birds chirping, greener grass, an ice-free lake, just a few signs that spring is here at Lackawanna State Park near Clarks Summit. 

Joe Rappenglueck is welcoming the change in season. “I love the changes of season. I love the flowers blooming. The trees and everything. And fish start biting pretty good,” he said.

He spent his Friday afternoon fishing on the lake. Doing so for the first time this year.

Another sign spring has sprung is the angle of the sun. The angle of the sun when it hits the Earth is important. It was cloudy on Friday, but the rays in the northern hemisphere will gradually become more and more direct. That allows more efficient heating of the surface. It will gradually warm up until the summer months. 

The angle is now at 48 degrees during solar noon. For the summer solstice, it is about 73 degrees at solar noon.

Although the trees aren’t blossoming just yet, the grass is a little greener. That’s because we’ve had rain in recent weeks, and all the snowpack is gone. 

We’ve had warm weather in recent weeks. The last 3 weeks have been 6 degrees above average, with an average high of 51 and average low of 31 in Scranton. 

This is welcome news for parkgoers like Scott Gower, who is happy to put winter behind him.

“It was a tough winter with the weather. We didn’t get out at all. With the weather breaking and spring officially here. We are excited to get out and bike for the first time today,” Gower said.

Gower was out on a bike ride. Planning for 6 miles with Bryan Chapman, his friend since kindergarten.

“We were both off work today, so it was a good day to get out. It’s not too cold out. First day of spring like you said. Try to enjoy it,” Chapman said.

John Andrews says he spends time outside every day, walking his dog no matter the temperature, “Being outside and walking Louisa every day, stopping for a coffee and making it an easy day.”

Josh Rodriguez was running with his friend George and his dog. “Nice vibes, good weather, nice fresh grass smell,” he said.

The average temperature this time of year is 49 degrees. In a month, that average jumps up to 63. By Memorial Day, we average highs near 74. For the first official day of summer, we can look forward to temperatures near 80.