Gorge Wind Forecast
It’s another light wind start to the day here in the Gorge. By noon, we should see W 10-13 from Viento to Rufus. The wind will build to 13-16, perhaps a touch more, for Rowena to Rufus this afternoon. Monday sees a powerful cold front swing in to the Northwest. This is not an ideal wind setup, but we will see some gusty westerlies ahead of the weather system. The day starts with W 5-10 everywhere. By 1pm or so, we’ll have 15-18 through the whole Gorge. A couple hours later, the wind will pick up to gusty 22-25 from Rowena to Arlington.
Tuesday is looking interesting as an upper level low moves inland. This is quite a complicated system, as the low will dump heavy rain in the western Gorge and possibly fire off thunderstorms in other locations. You’re probably getting the sense that this isn’t an ideal setup for wind. You are correct. That said, the models start the day with zero wind and bring it up to 26-30 in the afternoon from Rowena to Arlington. (continued below the chart)
| Your favorite beach | Dawn Patrol |
9am- 11:30a |
11:30a- 3pm |
3pm- dusk |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rooster Rock | clouds | above, | butts | below | |
| Steven’s Locks | light | light | 10-13 | 10-13 | |
| Hatchery/White Salmon Sandbar (minus a few for Hood River) | light | light | 10-13 | 10-13 | |
| Doug’s, Lyle, Rowena | light | light | 10-13 | 13-16 | |
| Rufus, etc. | light | light | 10-13 | 13-16 | |
| Roosevelt, etc. | light | light | 10-13 | 13-16 | |
Gorge Wind Forecast, continued.
You can probably scratch the Rufus stretch of the river off your list, as river flow has been hovering around 450kcfs. That’s going to make for very fast current in that section of the river. Water temp is currently 52 degrees. Moving on to the extended forecast, the GFS has high pressure offshore and low pressure inland on Wednesday, but that offshore high will be impacted by a front, and the low might fire off thunderstorms, leading to low-quality wind. We’ll have to wait and see the details, but the GFS currently has 30+ all day long.
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Jones, Sauvie’s, Coast Beta Test Forecast
There’s really not much in the way of northerlies at the coast (except today at Pistol) for the next three days. Nothing at Jones or Sauvie’s either.
Mt. Hood Snow Forecast
Models are still predicting significant snow this week. For today, Sunday, expect flurries on the mountain. The snow level will be 3000′ in the morning and 4500′ later. About 1” of snow will fall. Wind will be W 15. Monday looks partly to most cloudy with snow after 11pm. The snow level will be between 4000′ and 4500′. About 3” of snow falls overnight. Wind will be W 10 early and WSW 20 after 5pm.
Tuesday’s models currently show ridiculous snowfall: About 1.2-1.7” water value during the day, for 12-18” of snow above 5000′ with another .5” WV overnight, for 4-6” of additional snowfall. This actually seems possible given the very strong NW wind that will accompany the moisture, leading to orographic enhancement of snowfall rates. The snow level will be 4500′ early, 3500′ midday, and 4500′ late. Wind on Tuesday will be WSW 25 early WNW 30 in the afternoon, and WNW 40 after midnight.
Snow continues Wednesday morning, possibly shifting to light rain sprinkles in the afternoon as temps warm. The snow level will be 4500′ early and 6000′ in the afternoon, rising to 8000′ in the evening. About .3-.5” WV falls during the day, for 2-3” of snow. Wind will be WNW 40 all day. Come to think of it, we could see much higher precip rates with that much wind, and we’ll need to keep an eye on it.
Random Morning Thoughts
If I stop to reflect this morning, I’ll be late for yoga. So, you have an awesome day!
Disclaimer required by my grad school program: I am not your therapist (but I could be 40 graduate school credits from now). I am your weather forecaster. Take everything I say with a grain of salt, and consult with your actual therapist about your mental health issues. One other thing: I plan to keep doing this forecast indefinitely, even when I am a therapist.
Gorge Weather Forecast
It’s quite cloudy outside my window this morning and bears more resemblance to winter than summer. We’ll see this switch to partly cloudy with scattered sprinkles after noon. Temps will be in the mid 40’s early and the upper 50’s later. Moderate wind. 4% chance of rainbows. Monday looks partly cloudy and dry through the evening and very rainy after 10pm. Temps will be in the low 40’s early and the upper 50’s in the afternoon. Light wind early, moderate west wind later. No rainbows. Tuesday looks very wet through late afternoon and showery after that. Temps will be in the mid 40’s early and the mid 50’s in the afternoon. Calm wind early. Strong wind in the afternoon. 99% chance of rainbows.
For weather specifically directed at travel through the Gorge, please visit Temira’s Awesome Travel Advisory Service on Facebook.
White Sprinter Van of the Day
Road and Mountain Biking
No new news today. Just the usual reminders: the Rowena Curves are closed due to rockfall and hillside stabilization. Hospital Hill does not allow dogs at this time. Oh, I did read something on Facebook yesterday – the Oregon Gravel Grinder claims that McKenzie Pass will be open in time for their ride on June 4th. That seems rather optimistic, given the massive snowpack, but that’s what they are saying.
Upcoming Events
Today’s community events include three free yoga classes – 9am at Samadhi in White Salmon, 4pm YogaFaith at Pure Yoga in The Dalles, and 6pm restorative yoga at Pure Yoga Hood River. There’s pickup touch rugby for both kids and adults today at the Hood River Marina at 11. Coming up tomorrow, Kickball is at Bingen’s Daubenspeck Park at 6pm tomorrow.
If you’re already planning for next Saturday, there’s a work party at the Buck Creek trail, the Cascadia Dirt Cup mountain bike race in Post Canyon, a dressage show at the Hood River Saddle Club, and the Mt. Adams Endurance equestrian race.
Have an awesome day today!
Temira