Forecast - The Gorge is my Gym

Good morning!

It’s a gorgeous day today, and that means it’s time to go road biking. The Dirty Fingers approved ride of the day is riding to Lost Lake. If you’re a total studmuffin, you can ride from Dirty Fingers for a 50 mile round trip and around 4000 feet of climbing. If you’re merely human, ride from the mushroom farm in Dee for 27 miles and 2800 feet of gain. Lake Branch Road is not open, so you’ll be riding this as an out and back. Your incentive to ride today is… rain all day tomorrow, so get out there.

I also have a new favorite bike ride I want to share. It’s the Taco Time Trial. Ride to Parkdale on Monday or Tuesday for taco night at Eliot Glacier. Why is this a time trial? Because if you ride after work, you’ve got to move fast because you’re racing the sunset. Super fun ride!

If you can’t ride to Parkdale tonight, my workout pick is the Tuesday night Triathlon at the Event Site at 6pm. Also tonight at 6 is the Trail Builders’ thank you dinner at Family Man… That’s all trail builders, motorized users and bikers. Bring spaghetti, salad, desert, anything else, and a big cookstove, if you have one. And… that should be the only reason you’re in the Post Canyon mud bog today!

In windsurfing and kiting world, today is going to be light and glassy as high pressure across the Cascades crushes gradients. Perhaps Cathy Carter wants to hang out at her boathouse with me today?

A big cold front heads straight at us tonight, bringing back the wind. Westerlies build tomorrow, climbing into the 24-28 range out at Arlington by midafternoon. Rufus will see some wind too, but it’s going to be very gusty. In the western Gorge tomorrow, we’ll see rain showers and 16-19 miles per hour. Thursday is starting to look good, as high pressure at the coast sets up steadier wind through the Gorge. Yippee!

That’s it for today. Whatever you do today, have an awesome day!

Temira

6/6 Forecast

Good morning

More rain! Yay! This is going to be enough to make the trails muddy again, but I do have good news for mountain bikers: Knebal Springs is now clear of trees, so you’ve got Knebal, 8-mile, Dog River and Surveyor’s totally open on the 44 road. Last I heard, Bottle Prarie was 80% clear of trees, so it’s either clear or very close to clear now.

On the other side of the river, I know you guys really want to ride Ape Canyon and Falls Creek, but I have word that there’s still snow above 3500 feet, However, the 83 road is open now, so if you want to poke around on St. Helens, you can get to the Ape Canyon trailhead. Just don’t expect to ride the entire route.

If you’re looking for wind, there’s going to be a little this afternoon. As a short wave crosses the Cascades midday, west winds pick up into the 17-20 range from Hood River eastward. It’s going to be gusty, but it’s better than nothing at all. West winds continue tomorrow as high pressure at the coast drives 19-23 mph westerlies near Hood River. Unfortunately, the Hatchery is closed for repaving tomorrow, so you’ll have to figure that into your Monday plans.

Out on the little rivers, the Hood’s at 5.6 ft, the White Salmon’s around 4.6 ft, and the Klickitat’s at 3140cfs.

Finally, don’t forget to come watch the Mt. Hood Cycling Classic criterium bike race in downtown Hood River today. The wet roads are going to make things exciting, so swing by and cheer on the racers! If you have the stomach for it, stand at the corner of Wasco and Industrial, and watch the crashes on the steep, slippery 180 degree turn.

Have a great day today!

Temira