The Gorge is my Gym

Good morning!

This week’s report is brought to you by the Gorge Surf Shop at 13 Oak Street in downtown Hood River. The Gorge Surf Shop has Fanatic, Tabou, Gaastra and Maui Sails. Why should you shop there? Attitude (and you know that attitude is everything!) It’s the most relaxed shop in Hood River, with a thoughtful, experienced staff, along with a set of chairs for socializing locals right under the air conditioning vent! Why else should you go there? Bart. Enough said for today. We don’t know yet what this week’s giveaway will be, so we’ll call it the super-special prize of the week!

All of the weekend warriors headed to the Gorge right now are going to be happy and sore weekend warriors by the end of tomorrow. Why? This could just be the windiest weekend of the summer! Yesterday brought decent wind all through the Gorge, today is going to be a repeat, and tomorrow will be even stronger!

The cloud line this morning is west of Hood River, and the 5am gradient was at .14 from Portland to The Dalles. Unlike yesterday, this is a static setup, so strongest, steadiest wind today will be from Viento to Mosier in the morning, filling in at Stevenson and Doug’s in the afternoon. 21-24 early will build to 26-29 by midday, holding all day long.

On Sunday, a weather disturbance moves across the Northwest, driving upper twenties, maybe even low thirties east of Hood River. At this point, there’s no sign of hot weather or high pressure in the extended forecast, meaning we’re going to see lots of wind next week!

If you’re looking for something to do today that doesn’t involve getting on the water yourself, the Slider Project’s wake-style kiteboarding contest takes place at the Hood River Sandbar starting at 11am. Come down and watch kiteboarders pull amazing tricks on man-made features and maybe some huge air.

Coming up this evening, Hood River community ed presents the animated, highly acclaimed movie “Up” on the big screen at Jackson Park, and those kiteboarders we were just talking about celebrate with a party at the British Pub. Whatever you’re doing tonight, don’t stay out too late, because there’s a sleeping in-friendly swap meet starting at 8am tomorrow at Windance.

Boaters, the White Salmon is at 2.75 feet and the Klickitat’s at 1280 cfs. I heard a rumor that one of the rafting companies is training guides on Husum Falls this evening, so if you want to watch a bunch of experienced boaters dropping the Falls, swing by around 6:30 or 7pm (no promises on this one… subject to change)…

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

p.s. If you find this report useful, entertaining, or just happen 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. Thank you for using this report, and thank you for your support!

Good morning!

This week’s report is brought to you by the Gorge Surf Shop at 13 Oak Street in downtown Hood River. The Gorge Surf Shop has Fanatic and Tabou boards along with Gaastra and Maui Sails. Why should you shop there? Attitude… Attitude is everything, you know! It’s the most relaxed shop in Hood River, employing thoughtful, experienced staff. If you’re tired, join the socializing locals in the white plastic chairs right under the air conditioning vent! Why else should you go there? Bart. Enough said for today. We don’t know yet what this week’s giveaway will be, so we’ll call it the super-special prize of the week!

We’re going to see plenty of wind today for windsurfers and kiters to get on the water. The 5am gradient was at .13 from Portland to The Dalles, the cloud line was just west of Hood River (Viento-ish), and the wind was already blowing in the upper teens from Swell down to Doug’s. Portland should stay cloudy today, as a shortwave crosses the Northwest, so the wind is going to pick up. We’ll see 25-28 today, by midday in the western Gorge and then later filling in all the way to Arlington. Sometimes this setup leaves the Hatchery gusty, so be prepared to head east if the wind dies there.

Tomorrow looks very similar to today, with another strong marine push, so we’ll see 25-28 again, with the strongest steadiest wind from Mosier to Maryhill.

The early model runs for Sunday look just as windy as today and tomorrow! The early call for next week is more wind. =)

Down at the Hood River Sandbar at 3pm today, there’s a photo and video session for the Slider Project’s RoShamThrowDown, a wakestyle kiteboarding event taking place tomorrow. If you want to see some of the best riders in the world doing amazing tricks, head down there and check it out. Or, swing by tomorrow after 11 to check out the competition.

Coming up this evening, The Windsurfing Movie II plays on the big screen at the Columbia Room at the Best Western Hood River at 7pm. If you miss it tonight, you can catch it at Andrew’s over the next few days. And coming up tomorrow, UP plays on the big screen at Jackson Park at dusk, there’s a party for RoShamThrowDown at the British Pub starting at 9pm, and on Sunday, Windance hosts an all-sport swap meet starting at 7am!

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

P.S. If you find this report valuable, or you’d rather get it in your inbox, click below for a suggested $10 donation. I’ll put you on the mailing list through the end of May, 2011, and you’ll be in the running for some awesome prizes from the weekly sponsors.