Saturday test post

Meet Temira,
your Gorge and Mt. Hood forecaster

For almost 30 years, Temira (they/them) has been making the most of what the Gorge has to offer: riding river swell on a foil or windsurf board, carving fresh lines through the snow, and cycling all the gravel and pavement and trails. This is Temira’s playground, their gym… their life’s work.

That’s why in 2006, Temira took it upon themselves to create the most accurate, hyper-local weather forecasts possible. Inaccurate predictions had left too many fellow adventurers caught off-guard and in harm’s way. Temira was determined to change that. Today, Temira’s forecasts have become an essential resource for thousands of skiers, snowboarders, wind sports enthusiasts and travelers through the Gorge. With their guidance, you can plan ahead, time your sessions perfectly, and stay safer on the water, snow, and trails.

But the story doesn’t end there. Temira also authors the TATAS Facebook page – the Gorge’s premier source for microclimate forecasts. When winter storms, extreme heat, or other hazardous conditions (avalanches on SR-14 and I-84, for example!) threaten, this community lifeline becomes a vital resource for locals and visitors alike, helping to keep everyone safe.

Mt. Hood Snow Forecast

Good morning skiers and snowboarders! We’re in for a wild ride over the next five days. It’ll start with a snow-rain-snow event this afternoon into Sunday followed by massive snowfall into Monday. There’s a brief weather window Tuesday morning before highly active weather arrives for the rest of next week. Models still haven’t agreed on exactly how wild it will get, but the higher-end scenarios have massive precip that, at best, switches back and forth between piles of wet snow and torrential rain.

Saturday kicks off with clear sky to the east and high clouds to the west for a lovely sunrise. Snow arrives this afternoon and switches to rain tonight. The freezing level this morning is around 1000′. The snow level will be around 1500′ when the precip arrives. It rises to 5000′ this afternoon and (briefly) as high as 9000′ tonight before falling to 6500′ after midnight. About 0.1″ to 0.2″ water equivalent (WE) is forecast before the switch. Call it 1-3″ of new. Overnight, we’re looking at upwards of 1.0″ rain. Wind: NW 5-10 this morning, SW 15-30 this afternoon, W 50 (vastly amplifying the rain) tonight, and W 45 after midnight.

Things get really interesting at the resorts tomorrow as massive precip combines with strong wind and a crashing snow level. This combo can cause lift icing issues, so be prepared for that to happen when the snow level drops. It starts at 6500′ and falls to 3500′ by late morning. Overnight, the snow level drops to 1500-2000′ as temps fall to the mid 20s at 5000′. Check out how much moisture is involved: 1.2″ WE as mixed precip by mid-morning. Call it 3-5″ wet snow out of that. Then we see, by 4pm, another 1.2″ WE as increasingly dry snow. Call that 8-11″ of new. Overnight: another 0.8″ WE for 8-10″ dry powder. Given the wind, we could see reality beat that prediction by 25-50%. In other words, we could potentially see 2-3 feet of new instead of 1-1.5 feet of new. Wind: W 45 early, WSW 20-30 mid-morning, WNW 30-35 in the afternoon, and NW 40-45 overnight.

Powder continues to fall from the sky on Monday. The snow level will be 1500-2000′ and will fall to 1000-1500′ overnight. About 0.7” WE is forecast during the day for 7-9” fluffy powder. Another 0.3” WE is forecast overnight for 3-4” more. Wind: NW 40 (will affect lift ops) early, W 25 in the afternoon, and W 15 overnight. Remember that Meadows is closed on Monday.

Now our attention turns to a series of very strong systems in the Pacific coupled with a deep tap into tropical moisture. This all starts up after a brief calm window Tuesday morning. It’s not clear yet exactly what track these systems will take or where the atmospheric river hose will aim. Low end scenario for that Tuesday afternoon to Saturday morning time frame is total 2-4” precip. Upper end is upwards of 10” total precip. Given the overall setup, much of this is likely to come as rain, but periods of intense wet snowfall are not out of the question. The line between those two scenarios is razor-thin, and there’s no way to make a clear prediction yet. For now, know that next week could be chaos unless the low-end precip scenario plays out. Enjoy the mellow weather today, because there’s not much of it in the future!

Gorge Wind Forecast

Hi friends! Fun riding with you at the Hatch yesterday! We’ll have a couple chances for wind out east in the next few days, but it’s going to be marginal for many of us. Saturday just looks “light”. Westerlies drop to 10mph or less and stay there as rain moves in. River flow over the last 24 hours was 91-131kcfs, river temp is 52.70F, and high temp forecast is 46F.

Sunday starts out calm most places with 15mph or so out of the west between Rooster Rock and Viento. Give it a few hours for wind closer to your usual spots. Mid to late morning, westerlies rise to gusty 14-17 from Stevenson to Mosier with gusty 25-28 from Lyle to Rufus. The wind shifts farther east in the afternoon as rain moves inland: gusty 26-29ish from Maryhill to Boardman with gusty 14-17 from Stevenson to Avery. High temp: 57F.

Very basic Hood River weather forecast

Don’t plan your life around this. You really should read Temira’s Awesome Travel Advisory Service on Facebook for a detailed weather forecast.

Clear sky early quickly turns cloudy and adds rain midday. Rain turns heavy tonight. Temps start in the mid 30s and rise to the mid 40s. Light westerlies. 1% chance of rainbows.

Sunday will be rainy. Temps start in the upper 30s and rise to the low 50s. Moderate westerlies. 99% chance of rainbows.

Monday will be showery-dry-rainy. Temps start in the mid 30s and rise to the mid 40s. Moderate westerlies. 99% chance of rainbows.

Stay Connected with Local Events!

Want to know what’s happening in and around the Gorge? Check out my curated calendar of local outdoorsy events!

Local-ish Outdoorsy Events Calendar

Know of an outdoor-related local-ish event? Let me know! If you don’t tell me, I don’t know about it!

Cycling Update

Please see the HRATS/Hood River County for complete details on Post Canyon closures. Newly reopened in Post: lower Trail 100 paralleling the lower part of Post Canyon Road. The Twin Tunnels Trail between Hood River and Mosier has reopened.

Kreps and Green Diamond Lands have reopened. That includes Whoopdee, Hospital Hill, and Underwood.

Closed:
• Gorge 400 and lots of other trails due to the Whisky Creek Fire
• Trail near Mt. Adams due to the Williams Mine Fire

Remember: E-bikes are not allowed on USFS non-moto trails. They are allowed on moto trails.