Friday: my what a windy stretch of weather you have!

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Gorge Wind Forecast

Happy Friday, everyone! TGIF! The forecast is a bit late this morning because my friends and I are scrambling for creative alternative plans to Swell and the Hatchery. You too may want to shake up your usual and try something new. We’re looking at strong west wind all the way through Monday followed by more moderate wind through at least the middle of next week. Eastern Gorge launches will be an option for a good portion of this time. Yay! Before we jump in, a quick shoutout: thanks to iWind/iKite for hooking up the Tunnel 5 meteorologist with a free account so she has real-time wind readings to support her work. Next, this weekend is Kiteboard 4 Cancer at the Hood River Event Site. That launch belongs to the participants during the event. And… you can still sign up! KB4C: not just for kiters anymore! The Hatch and Swell remain closed due to the Tunnel 5 fire.

Let’s look at Friday. Pressures were 29.95/29.80/29.78 for gradients of 0.15 (big) and 0.02 with clouds in Portland. That’ll give the desert a big jump on heating today; Pasco is headed for 100 degrees, and that cross-Cascade temp gradient will drive up the wind. Localized instability near the Cascade Crest this afternoon could disrupt the wind some, but models aren’t certain of that. Okay, so … 26-30 from Viento to Mosier to start the day. Stevenson joins at 25-28 in a few hours, and the Lyle to Doug’s stretch jumps in at 26-30 by early afternoon. Rufus should climb to 23-26 mid afternoon, and Arlkington will hold at 13-16. River flow yesterday was 110-163kcfs (for an epic Viento downwinder today), river temp is 70F, and high temp forecast is 88F. What a day to be on the river!

Saturday sees a nice big marine push into Portland for a repeat of big cross-Cascade temp gradients. Want wind? No problem. How about 26-30 right off the bat from Viento to Mosier with 10-15 at Steveson and 21-24 from Lyel to Threemile. Afternoon wind: 26-30 all the way from Stevenson to Threemile. High temp: 86F for Hood River. 96F for Arlington.

Sunday looks just like Saturday to start. Pick a place, rig, and hit it! Afternoon westerlies could peak slightly stronger than Saturday: we’re looking at the potential for 29-33 from Lyle to Arlington with 26-30 everywhere else. High temp: 88F. The Big Cooldown is forecast on Monday with westerlies at 30-35 everywhere. Models suggest winds will drop back to the low-mid 20’s on Tuesday and Wednesday. Whew. What a stretch of wind.  

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Jones, Sauvie’s, Coast

Wind speed in knots. Direction Northerly unless otherwise noted for Coast. Westerly for Jones. Northerly for Sauvie Island. North/Central/South, waves. Wave forecast provided by NWS. Friday: W5-10/LTW/N10-15, NW 5′ @ 9. Saturday: WNW5-10/LTS/LTV, NW 4′ @ 8. Sunday: LTW/LTV/LTV, NW 3′ @ 10. Jones Friday-Sunday: 17-20. Sauvie Island Friday: 14-17 after 5pm. Saturday: 11-14 after 5pm. Sunday: 7-10.  

Mt. Hood Snow Forecast

On vacation until fall unless something extraordinary happens.  

Hood River Weather Forecast

Clear sky this morning adds a few high clouds later. Temps will be in the low 60’s early and upper 80’s later. Strong westerlies. No rainbows. Saturday will be mostly clear with a few thunderheads possible but not super likely. Temps start in the upper 50’s and rise to the mid 80’s. Strong westerlies. No rainbows. Sunday will be clear then will add a few clouds. Temps start near 60 and rise to the upper 80’s. Strong westerlies. No rainbows. Monday looks cooler and nuking windy.

Looking for a complete Columbia Gorge forecast? Looking for more humor in your weather? Obscenities? You’re looking for my TATAS: Temira’s Awesome Travel Advisory Service on Facebook.  

Local-ish Events

Please let me know of outdoor-related local-ish events. If you don’t tell me, I don’t know!

Kiteboard 4 Cancer runs Friday through Sunday at the Hood River Event Site. There’s a free weekly wing foil orientation at the Hook Thursdays in July and August from 5:30pm to 7:30pm brought to you by Wylde Wind and Water and CGW2. On Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 9am, Max from GoFoil will be teaching flatwater foil pop-up technique. He hopes to also teach bump classes in the afternoon on those days should the Hatch reopen.

Regular weekly events: NK Studios in Bingen has a donation-based yoga class at 7:30am every Tuesday. Ferment’s Tuesday night 4-mile walk/run is at 6pm. There’s meditation with monks at 5:15pm (an hour) and 6:30pm (30 minutes plus a talk) at Yoga Samadhi in White Salmon. At 7:15am on Wednesdays, there’s a run from the White Salmon Bakery. At 7am on Friday morning, there’s a run from Pine Street Bakery. On Fridays at 2:30pm, there’s a free meditation and stretching class at Yoga Samadhi. On Saturday at 9am, there’s a by-donation outdoor group fitness on the 2rd floor deck above Ferment Brewing.

Regular bike rides (thanks to the Hood River Area Trail Stewards for collecting). Tuesday is Mountain View’s ride. Meet at 5:45pm on Post Canyon Drive where the pavement ends. Wednesday is the Evo/Kickstand all-ability, no-drop Post Canyon ride. 5:30 from the shop or join along the way. All abilities welcome. Thursday is Mountain View’s women’s ride. 5:30pm, Seven Streams Trailhead. No drop. Thursday is also the Dirty Fingers Post and Pint. 5:30 from the shop or later at Family Man. This is hardcore, race-pace. Saturday morning is the Mountain View road/gravel ride. Two hours. 12-14mph average speed. Starting May 6th, Oregon Ebikes has the women’s ride at 8:30am. Meet at Seven Streams parking lot for a 1.5 to 2 hour ride.  

Cycling

How much rain do you need to make brown pow out of dust? Somewhere between 0.1” and 0.25”. When’s it gonna happen? Who the heck knows? Did it rain on the 44 trail system over the last few days? Go check it out and tell me! Logging is happening on Hospital Hill on the trail between the top of Roll Baby Roll and the Bench. This means you cannot make a full circle. You could ride Bad Wolf and Millennium as a loop. You can ride Roll Baby Roll and Triple Bypass as a loop. You cannot access Treehugger at this time. Post is clear of snow to the top. Dog River and Surveyor’s are clear. Bottle Prairie, 8 Mile, Underhill, Cedar Creek, Lower Cooks, and Super Connector are open and already dusty. Fifteenmile is rideable. Super Duper Connector is open. Nestor Peak is clear of snow. The USFS website says that Lewis River is open and clear. The Forest Loop above Trout Lake is open as is the mixed surface Sleeping Beauty/8810 loop. Always remember to consider gravel riding! If you’re parking at Post Canyon, you will need a parking pass. Those can be purchased at many local shops or online.  

Valuable Advice for Gardeners Inhabiting Neighboring Areas

You have an unusual solstice-week opportunity. With the clouds and the chance of drizzle and the cool temps, you have a perfect opportunity to sow seeds. Replace your lettuce. Drop in another round of cilantro. Add some arugula. Carve out a little trench for some carrots. Water them, and you might just get away with once-a-day watering through Monday. It’s also a decent time to add some plants to your garden. They’ll prefer this gentle start to a harsh, hot-weather transplant. Happy gardening.  

Sprinter Van of the Week!

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Have an awesome day!