Friday: a windy day followed by a cool and breezy weekend.

The best snow forecast for Mt. Hood. The best wind forecast for the Gorge.

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The Forecast

Your favorite beach	Dawn Patrol	9am- 11:30a	11:30a- 3pm	3pm- dusk
Today’s Gorge Wind – these are ranges for the average speed, not a predicted wind range. =)
Rooster Rock	cloudy	day	buns	go away
Steven’s Locks	10-13	15-18	23-26	27-31
Viento	19-22	21-24	25-28	27-31
Swell-Hood River	15-18	21-24	25-28	27-31
Lyle to Doug’s	7-10	16-19	23-26	27-31
Rufus, etc.	7-10	14-17	23-26	27-31
Roosevelt & Arlington	7-10	14-17	23-26	27-31

Gorge Wind Forecast

Happy Friday, everyone! I was out all night on crisis calls, so we’ll keep this brief. A windy day on Friday is followed by a windy day on Saturday. Those two are followed by a breezy, chilly day on Sunday and again on Monday. Lesser wind is likely for the middle part of next week as we lose the offshore high pressure that’s been driving the strong, consistent wind.

Friday kicks off with pressures of 30.21/30.13/30.11 for gradients of 0.08 and 0.02. That seems to indicate you should stay close to the Corridor. That’s a fine choice, but you’ll have more choices this afternoon as a cold front approaches the coast and the desert heats up. For the morning, expect the wind to build to 20-23 from Stevenson to Hood River. Early afternoon westerlies rise to 25-28 from Stevenson to Doug’s with 20-23 at Rufus. As desert heating kicks in and cool air moves closer to the coast, the wind rises to 27-31 from Stevenson to Arlington. Models hold the wind speeds in that range all through the Gorge, but past practice suggests that Viento to Hood River may back off as the frontal system nears in the late afternoon. River flow yesterday was 155-217kcfs, river temp is 64F, and high temp forecast is 78F.

Saturday starts with marine clouds to Hood River. That’s a good sign! Westerlies will be in the 11-14 range all through the Gorge early morning in a post-frontal environment. The wind rises to 22-25 from Stevenson to Mosier with 17-20 out east midday. Onshore flow on the west side replenishes the cold air. Out in the desert, the sun warms things up. This combo takes the wind to 28-32 from Lyel to Threemile in the afternoon with 17-20 from Stevenson to Mosier. High temp: 69F.

Sunday, believe it or not, will be showery in the western Gorge! The wind will stay in the 10-13mph range or less west of The Dalles. Combine the cool west side with the warm desert for 24-28 from Avery to Threemile in the afternoon. High temp: just 59F. Monday’s forecast is currently 22-25. That’s all I’ve got today. I’m so tired! You have a great day on the river!

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Jones, Sauvie’s, Coast

Wind speed in knots. Direction Northerly unless otherwise noted for Coast. Westerly for Jones. Northerly for Sauvie Island. North/Central/South, waves. Wave forecast provided by NWS. Friday: 5-10/10-15/30-35+, NW swell 4′ at 8 seconds. Saturday: 10/10-15/20-25, NW 6′ @ 10. Sunday: W5-10/W5-10/W5-10, NW 5′ @ 11. Jones Friday: 11-14. Saturday: 16-19. Sunday: 7-10. Sauvie Island Friday: 13-16. Saturday: NW10-15. Sunday W 10-15.

Mt. Hood Snow Forecast

On vacation until fall unless something extraordinary happens.

Hood River Weather Forecast

High clouds increase today. Temps will be near 60 early and in the upper 70’s later. Moderate westerlies early. Strong westerlies later. No rainbows. Saturday starts with low and high clouds and ends high overcast. Temps start in the mid 50’s and rise to the upper 60’s. Moderate westerlies. NO rainbows. Sunday will be showery. Temps start in the mid 40’s and rise to the upper 50’s. Light westerlies. 89% chance of rainbows.

Looking for a complete Columbia Gorge forecast? Looking for more humor in your weather? Obscenities? You’re looking for my TATAS: Temira’s Awesome Travel Advisory Service on Facebook.

Local-ish Events

Please let me know of outdoor-related local-ish events. If you don’t tell me, I don’t know! Coming up Sunday, there’s a swap meet at Windance. It’s the Backyard Half in White Salmon on Saturday. The Pray for Wind party is at Kickstand on Saturday.

Regular weekly events: NK Studios in Bingen has a donation-based yoga class at 7:30am every Tuesday. Ferment’s Tuesday night 4-mile walk/run is at 6pm. There’s meditation with monks at 5:15pm (an hour) and 6:30pm (30 minutes plus a talk) at Yoga Samadhi in White Salmon. At 7:15am on Wednesdays, there’s a run from the White Salmon Bakery. At 7am on Friday morning, there’s a run from Pine Street Bakery. On Fridays at 2:30pm, there’s a free meditation and stretching class at Yoga Samadhi. On Saturday at 9am, there’s a by-donation outdoor group fitness on the 2rd floor deck above Ferment Brewing.

Regular bike rides (thanks to the Hood River Area Trail Stewards for collecting). Tuesday is Mountain View’s ride. Meet at 5:45pm on Post Canyon Drive where the pavement ends. Wednesday is the Evo/Kickstand all-ability, no-drop Post Canyon ride. 5:30 from the shop or join along the way. All abilities welcome. Thursday is Mountain View’s women’s ride. 5:30pm, Seven Streams Trailhead. No drop. Thursday is also the Dirty Fingers Post and Pint. 5:30 from the shop or later at Family Man. This is hardcore, race-pace. Saturday morning is the Mountain View road/gravel ride. Two hours. 12-14mph average speed. Starting May 6th, Oregon Ebikes has the women’s ride at 8:30am. Meet at Seven Streams parking lot for a 1.5 to 2 hour ride.

Cycling

How much rain do you need to make brown pow out of dust? Somewhere between 0.1” and 0.25”. Maybe late this weekend or early next week! Post is clear of snow to the top. Dog River and Surveyor’s are clear. Bottle Prairie, 8 Mile, Underhill, Cedar Creek, Lower Cooks, and Super Connector are open and already dusty. Fifteenmile is rideable. Super Duper Connector is open. There is still snow on a short section of Surveyor’s between the Cooks Meadow intersection and Dog River. Nestor Peak is clear of snow. The USFS website says that Lewis River is open and clear. Falls Creek isn’t even close! The Forest Loop above Trout Lake is open as is the mixed surface Sleeping Beauty/8810 loop.

Cows are in on Hospital Hill. That means dogs are no longer allowed. Even if your dog is cool. Even if you’re a local. Even if … you get the picture! Hospital Hill is private land. Please respect the wishes of the landowners – they’re generous enough to let folks use that land, and dogs have been shot there before. Please don’t ride muddy trails, or you’ll do permanent damage. Always remember to consider gravel riding! If you’re parking at Post Canyon, you will need a parking pass. Those can be purchased at many local shops or online.

Valuable Advice for Gardeners Inhabiting Neighboring Areas

All that weeding you’ve (I’ve) been putting off will get done in the next week or so! Weeds (especially those that haven’t gone to seed) are nitrogen for your compost. Mix them in with some browns, and you’ll have a hot, quick pile fired up in no time at all!