My oh my. I decided I needed a change of scenery yesterday and headed over to Skibowl. Many thanks to all the folks over there, especially Erich and Hans, for their hospitality. I think that was one of the best days ever at Skibowl, with steep and deep fresh tracks for hours. Yum. I heard Meadows was equally good. They opened the Private Reserve yesterday, and the pictures make it look deep and dry. Oh happy day. I’m sure Timberline was good too! Today looks like another ridiculous powder day on Mt. Hood. Get it now, because the forecast doesn’t show much precip for the next 5-7 days. Continued after the chart.
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4a-8a | 8a-12p | 12p-4p | 4p-8p | 8p-4a |
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| Today 500′-1000′ |
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| Tomorrow 500′ |
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| The next day 0′-500′ |
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Mt. Hood Snow Forecast, continued…
Today looks snowy in the morning with flurries through the evening. The snow level will be 500-1000′ all day. We’ll see .2-.3” WV this morning, for 2-4” of new snow, followed by flurries and no significant accumulation. Wind today will be W 20-30 for much of the day, swinging to NW 20-30 overnight.
Tomorrow may starts off with a few flurries, but will clear up during the day. Some low clouds and/or fog are possible at the lowest elevations of the resorts. The free air freezing level will be 500′ or less all day. No accumulation. NW wind at 20-25 all day.
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Saturday looks clear and sub-freezing (highs in the mid 20’s at 5000′) with some high clouds possible. The free air freezing level will be 500′ or less all day, dropping to the surface in the evening. No new snow. Light and variable wind. In other words, it’s going to be a ridiculous, epic, amazing packed powder groomer day. If all three resorts don’t park out on Saturday, I’m going to be surprised.
Sunday will probably start out clear and end up with high clouds. It’s possible we’ll see an inch or two of snow into Monday morning, but models aren’t agreeing on that. The free air freezing level will likely be at the surface, but the sounding model is showing +1 degree C between 4000′ and 7000′ for a period of time in the morning. In other words, the snow may warm up a little bit, so Saturday is more epic than Sunday if you’re looking for groom. Wind on Sunday will be SW 10-15.
There’s really not much precip in the forecast for the next five to seven days. But that, of course, could change.
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Gorge Wind Forecast
We have light westerlies this morning at 10-15, and they will continue all day. Tomorrow starts off with W 10-15 and picks up to W 13-16 from Stevenson to Doug’s in the afternoon. Saturday starts off with E 10-15 and picks up to E 40 in the afternoon. It looks like we’ll see E 40, dropping to E 30, on Sunday. Monday looks like E 30, fading to light E in the afternoon.
Random Morning Thoughts
I spent yesterday morning riding deep Skibowl powder with my friends Reese and Denise. Well, actually, we played “no friends on a powder day” together, which is just as good, because you get to come together and celebrate at random times during the day!
As I was lapping Upper Bowl and Cascade chair, I noticed something happening. I would do a run, and then I would get back to the chair as quickly as I could to get in another run. I was chasing fresh tracks, and I was getting anxious about it. I suspect almost all of us powderhounds do this, especially on Mt. Hood which has a lot of skiers and not a lot of space for fresh tracks…
I made a resolution: I decided I would savor every second of my next run. I decided I would feel my skis floating and bouncing, that I would really luxuriate in the feeling of my next face shot and my next jump. And guess what? I got to the bottom of the run and didn’t feel that need to rush to the chair for another lap.
Our mountain aren’t huge. Our powder stashes are limited. Make the most of them by making the most of each moment of each run. See if you can be fully present for each turn. See if you can really feel each muscle movement. Hear everyone around you hollering with joy – maybe join in with your voice! Notice, fully notice, that wall of snow you throw into your face as you turn hard. Speaking of your face, make sure there’s a smile on it. If there isn’t, you’re likely not in the moment, because who in their right mind could ski epic powder and not be grinning? Powder is awesome, and so are you. Have an awesome powder day!
Disclaimer required by my grad school program: I am not your therapist. I am your weather forecaster. Take everything I say with a grain of salt, and consult with your actual therapist about your mental health issues.
Gorge Weather Forecast
I just stepped outside, and I saw stars. It’s partly cloudy this morning, and it’s likely we’ll see some showers/mixed precip beginning mid-morning and continuing through the evening. Temps will be in the mid 30’s all day today, dropping below freezing tonight. Light west wind. Icy roads tonight. 99% chance of rainbows.
If the sounding model is correct, we’ll be under the Nothing all day tomorrow. However, if the wind model is correct, we’ll be partly cloudy. If you want sun, you’ll probably need to head to the mountain. Temps will be in the upper 20’s early and the mid 30’s in the afternoon. Light west wind. Icy roads overnight. 2% chance of rainbows.
Saturday is looking sunny, as dry air from the east scours out the Nothing (hopefully). Temps will be in the low 20’s early and the low 30’s in the afternoon. It’s worth mentioning that it could be a lot colder in areas where there is snow on the ground due to overnight radiational cooling. Anyway, building east wind. Icy roads at night. No rainbows.
Next chance of precip is late Sunday night or early Monday morning. The GFS has us just seeing flurries. The Euro predicts several inches of snow in the Gorge. We’re going to have to wait and see if they converge on a solution over the next few days. TATAS would just like you to be aware that there’s the potential for some travel issues Monday morning. In addition, the long-range model has us below freezing here in the Gorge every single day for the next seven days. It’s time to break out your fur coat!
White Sprinter Van of the Day
Road and Mountain Biking
Much too wet, unless you’re riding gravel roads or pavement. Thanks for being nice to our trails. If you want to be in the woods, hiking is always nice. Or you can contact your local trail builder and offer to do some maintenance. Please ask before working. Each trail has an adopter.
Holistic Massage of Hood River
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Upcoming Events
I have no idea what events are on and what events are off tonight and tomorrow. If you attend the regularly scheduled events, you likely have more knowledge about these things than I do! I shall just leave you with that and wish you a very merry Christmas Eve!
Have an awesome day today!
Temira
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