The Dog Days of ... Winter?

No, you didn't sleep all the way through to April. It's actually in the high 60s in the end of January.

Forecaster Heather Sheffield at the National Weather Service's office in Sterling, VA, said the high temperatures Tuesday and Wednesday in the Baltimore area are due to a high pressure system off the East Coast.

But before you go trading snowshoes for skateboards, Sheffield said, expect a cold front to put a damper on those plans, with a 40 percent chance of rain by Wednesday night and a 70 percent chance of rain on Thursday. Temperatures, however, will only go as low as 34 degrees on Friday night, according to the NWS forecast.

Temperatures have been mild all winter, and snow has been light. On average, Baltimore sees 18.2 inches of snow every season, according to the National Weather Service. This winter, the measuring station at BWI Airport counted 1.3 inches in January and trace amounts in October and December.

Tell us in the comments: What do you think about the lackluster season for snow? Has it hurt your skiing or saved you a snow-day headache?

What's happening? Forecaster Justin Berk, formerly of , blames weather phenomena like La Niña and the North Atlantic oscillation, which blocks Arctic air and high pressure systems.

"We've had a couple of pushes of cold air, but I would say pretty much since the end of October when some of us had this snow, we've had this pattern locking the cold air in the North so we don't get the chance to experience it," Berk said.

Berk compared the oscillation effect to "counting cards at the black jack table" and said storms might be in the cards for the Baltimore area.

"We've built up this above normal pattern for such a long period of time, you have to expect the bottom's going to come crashing on us," Berk said. Ironically, it's colder than normal temperatures that help to fuel severe weather in the spring."

The warm winter is also hurting businesses that thrive this time of year. In December, The Baltimore Sun reported on troubles at western Maryland ski resorts, where the season got a slow start.

Sheffield said current projections call for a 40 percent chance of above-normal temperatures in February, and roughly average precipitation.

Berk didn't have statistics, but a hunch that we'll see substantial snowfall before the winter is out.

"You've got to have faith in the flakes," he said. "I'm not saying we'll have a blizzard but I do believe we'll have a shot at getting some snow."