Holyoke St. Patrick's Parade weather over the years

HOLYOKE, Mass. (WWLP) - The Holyoke St. Patrick's Parade is just a few days away and everybody is hoping for some nice

The 62nd annual Holyoke St. Patrick's Parade is this Sunday and in its years there have been all kinds of weather.

Back in 1998 snow fell on parade day and even though the parade went on, a number of units did cancel and the crowds were down.

High temperatures this time of year are usually in the mid 40's, but that was not the case at all last year. It was one of the warmest parades with people in short sleeves along the parade route.

The temperature made it all the way up to 79 degrees, breaking a record.

 “When it's warmer you notice the biggest crowd around. It's more enjoyable and you see younger families coming around more often,” said Ana Hilyard of Holyoke.

Over the last five years most of the temperatures on parade day have been in the upper 40's but 2010 was another mild year with temperatures in the 60's.

Despite a big snowstorm last month things are looking pretty good for this year's parade.

With the recent rain and mild temperatures you'll be hard pressed to find much if any snow along the parade route.

The parade route is looking pretty clear and street sweepers have even taken care of the sand on the sides of the roads.

Some say despite the weather the parade always attracts a big crowd.

“I've seen it when it's bitter cold and we had to plow the snow the day before and we still had the same crowds and I've seen other times when there've been people in t-shirts and shorts but the crowds are pretty consistent,” said Carl Peterson of Holyoke.