Mt. Hood snow and Gorge wind forecast | The Gorge is my Gym

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Now that the kids are back in school, the nights are cooling off, and the tourists are starting to leave the Gorge, it’s time to think skiing and snowboarding. Meadows passes are now on sale for the you-don’t-need-three-friends price of $499. Included in that price is the new Stadium Express lift (use your imagination and giggle when you realize the only possible abbreviation for that lift), eliminating the need for you to use the cattle crossing to Star (snowboarders, cheer loudly). The new lift gets you over to Star, HRM and Heather (it tops out at the same spot as Heather) without waiting in the MHX line. At this point, we’re looking at a weak La Nina or a neutral year, meaning average (450”) or better (max=830”) snowfall. I’ll do the statistical analysis and get back to you. Buy your season pass now!

Yesterday was windy, and today looks like a repeat. Heck, the whole week looks like a repeat of some sort. We’ll have 22-25 this morning near Hood River, picking up to 24-28 by midday from Hood River out to The Dalles, and filling in at Stevenson and maybe even as far east as Maryhill.

Coming up tomorrow, we’ll see more clouds in Portland in the morning, so we’ll start off with 23-26 near Hood River in the morning, picking up to 26-30 and filling in as far east as Maryhill and possibly even Arlington late in the day as a system nears the coast. Actually, depending on the timing of that system, we might see one of those days where Stevenson is the windiest, steadiest stop in the afternoon.

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On Thursday morning, that weak weather system swings through the Gorge, giving us at least 25-28 in the morning, and a good chance of short-lived 30+ later in the day. When that system swings through, the strongest wind will likely switch to Stevenson and Arlington.

At this point, it looks like the west wind will stick around through the weekend, with a chance of some sprinkles on Sunday.

If you’re a mountain biker, there’s a good chance you’re in Vegas right now at Interbike checking out cool new bike stuff. But even if all the shop guys and gals are gone, the trails are still here, and the shop rides are still on for Wednesday and Thursday at Dirty Fingers. Post Canyon is getting really dusty, and so are the trails on the 44 Road, but Lewis River is still in great shape if you’re looking for a great ride or a hike through old-growth forest. Just watch out for yellowjackets, wherever you’re headed. They’re aggressive this year.

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 link below. For a suggested donation of $10, I’ll add you to the email version of this list ‘til August 2012, putting you in the running for cool prizes donated by the weekly sponsors. If you don’t PayPal, you can send a donation to PO Box 841 in Hood River, 97031.

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So, hopefully that’s our big heat wave for the summer. High temps today will drop to 80 in the western Gorge and around 90 in The Dalles. With the drop in temperatures and the return of marine air to Portland, the west wind is back with a vengeance. The gradient was at .18 at 5am, and that’s going to give us 28-32 near Hood River, filling in from Stevenson to The Dalles this afternoon. I’ll confess, I didn’t expect anywhere near this much wind this early in the cooldown, especially when I went to bed at 9pm last night and it was still 85 degrees with 24% humidity in Hood River. But, iWindsurf says it’s blowing 29 at the Hatchery, and the trees outside my house sound like they’re going to blow over. So, it’s windy. We’ll take it.

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Tomorrow sees even more clouds and cooler air in Portland, so we’ll start off with westerlies in the 24-28 range from Hood River to Mosier, picking up to 28-32 from Hood River to The Dalles in the afternoon, and likely filling in at Stevenson too.

A weak weather system brushes Oregon on Wednesday, dropping temps in the central Gorge into the low seventies. That’ll give us west wind in the mid twenties near Hood River in the morning, picking up to the upper twenties in the afternoon. Thursday looks pretty much the same as Wednesday.

In events this evening, there’s the hammerhead bike ride leaving downtown Hood River at 5pm (that sounds miserable in this much wind), and for the mere mortals, there’s the Alternative Ride to the Thirsty Woman in Mosier, leaving Mountain View Cycles at 6:15 (hopefully the wind will die off in time for the return trip). If you’re coming on the A.R., you need a helmet and lights.

Coming us later this week, it’s the Pendleton Roudup, and sure it’s not quite in the Gorge, but it’s a classic event, and you can still score tickets for every day but Saturday. Yee haw.

Have an awesome day today!

Temira