The Gorge is my Gym

Good morning!

It’s Locals Day today, and that means it’s time to head to downtown Hood River to experience crowd-free shopping and extra attention from relaxed salespeople. Wander down to 2nd Wind to check out the final couple of weeks of windsurfing and kiting season in the shop. The big rearranging day is coming, when 2nd Wind morphs into a ski shop. But before that happens, you can score some great deals on kites and boards from this season and skis from last season.

It’s going to be a very cool and cloudy day today as a low pressure system parks over the Northwest, bringing a chance of rain and even a chance of some thunderstorms. With this setup, gradients are very light this morning, just .04 from Portland to The Dalles, and they’ll remain light until afternoon, when we’ll see gusty 13-18 from Hood River east to Maryhill.

Tomorrow morning looks quite similar, as low pressure stays parked over the Cascades and the north pacific high stays out of the picture. The upper low that moves over the western half of the region today shifts east tomorrow afternoon, setting up stronger gradients. We should see mid-twenties from Doug’s to Rufus tomorrow, with less wind in the central Gorge.

Forecasting more than a day or two out in the fall is quite difficult, but at this point, it looks like the west winds will keep blowing on Thursday, with mid-twenties east of The Dalles in the afternoon.

With the light wind in the mornings this week, it’s time to begin training for ski season. I don’t know what that means for you, but for me, it means doing the Hood River stairclimb and riding up big hills on my road bike. See you out there! .

If you are looking for a good workout tonight, there’s the Tuesday night triathlon practice at the Hood River Event Site. If you show up at 6pm, you can join the crew for a friendly 500 yard swim, 2 mile run and 8 mile bike ride. And if you can’t make it tonight, they’ll be doing the workout again on Thursday evening.

Boaters, the White Salmon’s still around 1 ¾ feet, the Klickitat’s just over 700 cfs and the Tieton River is at 1780 cfs!

Have a great 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 report is brought to you by 2nd Wind Sports at 210 Oak Street in Hood River. It’s Labor Day Weekend, and that means it’s sale time at 2nd Wind. Let’s help them get rid of the kite and windsurfing gear so they’ll have lots of room for the newest, raddest skis for winter! Basically, I’m saying you should come pick up some new gear at a great price. 2nd Wind has awesome, cheerful, intelligent employees who will help you spend your money wisely. It’s going to be a windy long weekend, so throw all your gear in the car, get down here, and swing by 2nd Wind to say hello!

First off, if anyone found a small Sony digital camera on Syncline on Friday or over the weekend, please contact me or leave a comment below this report. It’s not mine, but the nice owner (a gal named Lisa) would really like to have it back.

The wind is starting off lighter this morning as clouds and low pressure bridge the Cascades, knocking gradients down from yesterday. The gradients were .06 from PDX-DLS and .05 out east this morning. Even so, we’ll see a slow build into the 15-18 range this afternoon from Stevenson down to Maryhill as a cold front approaches the coast. With all the clouds this morning and the unstable air, I’m not expecting high quality wind today. It’s going to be gusty out there on the river.

If the forecast holds for tomorrow, an upper level low will set up off the Oregon Coast, effectively killing the pressure gradient across the Cascades and shutting off the Gorge wind for the day. I’m going to take the optimistic view of Tuesday, and say we’ll see 13-16 in the afternoon in the Western Gorge.

That upper low moves east of the Cascades on Wednesday morning, allowing the North Pacific High to send stronger westerlies through the Gorge. If the models hold, Wednesday should be windy, with windspeeds in the mid 20’s likely.

Coming up this evening, there’s the alternative ride out of mountain view cycles, leaving the shop around 6:30 and heading to Mosier. Everyone is welcome on this ride, but please leave your spandex at home! If you show up for the ride today, you’re in the running for a free … from Mountain View. And if you’re coming, don’t forget warm clothes and a light for the ride home!

Have a great 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.