Category: Forecast

Good morning!

Hopefully all you windsurfers and kiters spent some time on the water yesterday. If not, don’t be sad, because the wind isn’t stopping any time soon. The 5am gradient was at .10, from Portland to The Dalles, the 5am sunrise was beautiful, and the marine cloud line is west of Hood River this morning. Strongest, steadiest wind will be at the Hatch, Sandbar and Mosier this morning, and at Doug’s and Rowena this afternoon. 21-24 is the call this morning, with 23-26 the call this afternoon.

Tomorrow starts off with a chance of showers in the central Gorge as a low pressure system heads for the desert. Chase the low pressure eastward for strong wind from Doug’s to Arlington tomorrow. I think 26-30 by mid-afternoon is a safe call. Note, that’s the safe call… It might be 29-33.

Thursday looks like a repeat of Wednesday, and at this point, it’s starting to look windy all the way through the weekend! Yippee! (My brain is excited. My body is protesting. So is my lack of sleep.)

If you love sailing at the Hatchery, remember that a lot of the Hatch sailors will be at the contest this week, so it’s going to be uncrowded sailing. Also, both lanes of Highway 14 are open at White Salmon all week. There are some closures at Dog Mountain, so check the WSDOT website for more information.

If you’re headed down to Pistol River for the contest, it’s looking like there will be plenty of wind on the south coast starting Thursday. It’s not looking like a super-nuker for the event, but 25-35 knots is the current forecast.

In other news, someone told me yesterday that the mud has dried up on Lewis River and Falls Creek, so head to those rides for some great deep-forest mountain biking out of the wind. I also have reports that Knebal and 8-mile are in awesome shape. Ape Canyon is still not open, and with snow levels dropping to 4000 feet today and tomorrow, it’s not going to melt out any time soon. C’mon Mother Nature!

If you’re looking for after work fun tonight, there’s the Tuesday Night Triathlon at the Event site at 6pm. I’m not sure if that’s considered fun, but it’s a good group of people and the beer drinking afterwards is sure to be fun (if you like beer)… That’s a 500 yard swim, 8 mile bike and 2 mile run. Also tonight is the Big Winds’ ladies’ standup paddle club, with free demos and lessons, but that’s weather permitting, and I’m guessing it’s unlikely given the wind forecast.

And out on the rivers, the White Salmon’s at 3.75 feet and the Klickitat’s at 2610 cfs. I’m off to the Klickitat today to paddle around. Wish me luck. =)

If you’d like to receive this forecast as an email, click on the donate button at the bottom of the page for a suggested donation of $10. If you’re on that email list, you’ll have a chance to wind lots of cool prizes (it’s free acupuncture this week and next, and that’s a rad prize for a beat-up Gorge athlete!)

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

Temira

Good morning!

There’s a pretty solid cloud line just west of Hood River this morning, and that’s good news for all of you wind Johnnies (wind Johnnies = poleboarders and tangleboarders). The 5am gradient was at .15 from Portland to The Dalles, and it was already blowing in the low twenties from Swell to Doug’s. With the clouds stacked up like this, strongest wind today will be from Hood River to Mosier in the morning and at Doug’s and Rowena this afternoon. We’ll see 24-29 at the windy spots today, all day long, and 19-24 at the less windy places. If you’re headed to the Hatchery, highway 14 at White Salmon is 100% open today. Highway 14 at Dog Mountain is closed 9-11am and at various other times.

High pressure holds at the coast tomorrow and low pressure drops into the Washington desert from BC. That setup will power winds in the 22-26 range from Rowena eastward tomorrow. Wednesday is looking like another big westerly day. I think I might have to take the entire week off. =)

If you’d prefer wind and waves, the central coast will fire again today, with 25 knots and a 12 foot swell. After today, the coastal wind backs off a bit.

Out on the mountain bike trails, the dirt is very, very good, and if you can ride today, you should. My bike is in the shop, (that would be Dirty Fingers Bike Repair), yet again, so I will not be riding. Mountain bikes are like boats and old cars: money drains!

If you need some relaxation tonight – maybe to recover from bike repair bills – there are two fun things going on. First is community Tai Chi at Wilson Park in Hood River at 6pm. That’s a free class, with instruction provided. Second is Mountain View Cycle’s alternative ride. Meet at Mountain View at 6:30 tonight for a cruising ride to Mosier for dinner at the Thirsty Woman. Lights of some sort and a helmet are required for this ride. Mountain View is trying to start the Parkdale Taco ride again… that one will leave the shop at 5pm for tacos at Eliot Glacier. Give the shop a call if you’re interested.

That’s it for today. Have an awesome day today!

I’m off for a kayaking lesson… first ever… yippee!!!

Temira

p.s. If you’d like this forecast sent to your inbox each morning, or you just think it’s worth something, click on the “donate” link at the bottom of the page and kick down a suggested donation of $10. The email forecast has the added bonus of giving you access to cool prize drawings and shop discounts. Sweet.