Forecast - The Gorge is my Gym

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This week’s forecast is brought to you by Flow Yoga on 3rd Street in downtown Hood River. If you’re desperately searching for a workout now that the trails are muddy and the roads are slick, think about joining Flow (the not-just-yoga Yoga studio). You can choose from 25 fitness/training classes and 32 yoga/meditation classes. Starting November 6th, Flow is offering a 6-week snowsports series that targets your skiing and riding muscles (aka, your powder thighs). It’s going to be a solid workout, lots of fun, but most importantly, it’ll bring you into ski season ready for hours of faceshots (and way less time lying around sore the next day). As an added bonus, the instructor, Jessica is rad. If you’ve never been a Flow member, you can try out a month for just $49. One of you will win a free month membership at the end of this week!

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Good morning, and welcome to another day in a string of winter-like days in the Gorge. It’s cloudy out there this morning, from the Columbia River to the top of Timberline (as best I can tell, anyway).

There’s not much wind in the forecast for the next few days, unless you’re headed to the coast for southerlies. If you are, you already know that it’s windy. Speaking of the coast, the Nelscott Reef contest is yellow-lighted for a short window of opportunity with a 31 foot swell at 17 seconds.

If you were thinking of earning turns today, you’re going to have to go pretty high. The snow level was above the base of Meadows yesterday, and at least .5” of rain fell. In addition, on Wednesday, the sun warmed the snow enough that the surface melted. It’s going to be dust-on-crust conditions below 6000 feet (or maybe even higher than that) Hike high or don’t hike at all. If you don’t want to earn turns, Timberline is open Fri-Sun with Pucci, Bruno’s and Molly’s lifts operating on the lower mountain. Your fusion pass will get you on the mountain now through June.

Boaters, the White Salmon was at 2.0 feet last night, and the Hood is still hovering around 3.3 feet. At this point, I’d say our best chance of seeing the rivers come up again is Sunday morning, after a fast-moving front swings through on Saturday night.

Coming up this weekend, there’s the Cooper Spur Ski Patrol ski swap at the HR Saddle Club on Saturday at 9am. Also on Saturday at 9am is a trail work Party in Post Canyon. Meet at Family Man at 9am. (If you were wondering, the HRVHS swap is November 12th this year). On Sunday from 10-4, you can get your Meadows pass photo taken at the Hood River Inn.

Have an awesome day today!

Temira

p.s. If you find this report useful, entertaining, or just want to recognize all the hard work that goes into it, please take the time to make a donation by clicking on the button at the bottom of the page. For a suggested donation of $10, I’ll add you to the email version of this list ‘til May 2011, putting you in the running for cool prizes donated by the weekly sponsors.

Good morning!

This week’s forecast is brought to you by Flow Yoga on 3rd Street in downtown Hood River. If you’re desperately searching for a workout now that the trails are muddy and the roads are slick, think about joining Flow (the not-just-yoga Yoga studio). You can choose from 25 fitness/training classes and 32 yoga/meditation classes. Face it: losing your summer cycling fitness when the rain starts sucks. Keep your cycle legs strong this winter with spin classes (the view isn’t quite Rowena Crest, but the workout is the same), get in shape for skiing with Fly, and challenge your spirituality with Yoga church, aka Dharma Talks on Sunday. If you’ve never been a Flow member, you can try out a month for just $49. One of you will win a free month membership at the end of this week!

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The Nothing (aka the Thing that lives in the Gorge) is entrenched at the 1500 foot level this morning, but according to secret sources, it’s clear up on Mt. Hood. I can’t promise that’s true (my source could be lying to me), but I’m headed up to check it out. The skiing was quite good yesterday, and should be good today until the weather warms up and turns the snow into concrete.

Not that I’m suggesting you head to Meadows or Timberline to hike. After all, the resorts are closed, there’s no avalanche control work being done, and there are zillions of unmarked obstacles that could ruin your skis or your ski season by breaking your legs or head.

So don’t go skiing today.

Mountain biking is out, as the trails are muddy. Road biking should be good by this afternoon as the roads dry out (even if the Nothing sticks around).

Windsurfers and kiters will find some easterlies in the 25ish range later today at Stevenson and Rooster (likely in the sunshine) as an upper level low rotates along the coast, drawing wind through the Gorge.

Coming up the rest of the week, light rain returns and the wind goes away. Next chance for wind/lots of rain is Saturday night into Sunday as a front crosses the Gorge. Next chance for torrential downpours and melting snow in the mountains is Monday. If the forecast holds, we should see the Hood River come back in by Monday afternoon or Tuesday morning.

Later this evening, the Rocky Horror Picture Show plays at Columbia Center for the Arts at 8pm. There’s also Kayak Polo at the Hood River Pool at 8pm ($8/$40 for the season). The new Poor Boyz movie plays at Andrew’s tomorrow night, and the Cooper Spur Ski Patrol Swap is Saturday at the Hood River Saddle Club. Don’t forget that MHM pass pictures are on Sunday at the Gorge Room at the Hood River Inn. Bring on ski season!

Have an awesome day today!

Temira