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Monday. Smoke. East wind. West wind tomorrow.

Random Morning Thoughts

rocks
Waking up to the sight of wildfire, even a little wildfire, even a little wildfire on the far banks of a very big river, is worrisome. It makes me want to turn on all the sprinklers, because I live in a spot prone to wildfire.
 

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Gorge Wind

We’re still in an east wind pattern, but that will end this evening or overnight, depending on how quickly the marine clouds start filtering in to the Willamette Valley. This morning’s east gradient is .11, just a touch more than yesterday’s. Expect easterlies at 23-26 at Rooster Rock and 19-23 at Stevenson, fading fast after noon, and becoming E 5-10 in the evening.

Tomorrow starts with westerlies at 10-13, rising to gusty 24-28 from Lyle to Rufus in the afternoon. Stevenson will likely see 22-25 in the afternoon, and the Swell to Hood River stretch will probably see less wind at 19-23.

It looks like we’ll see westerlies at 10-13 on Wednesday morning, strongest from Swell to Mosier. Models have been inconsistent about afternoon wind, but at this point, they are predicting 21-24 on Wednesday afternoon, likely strongest east of HR, with 13-16 in the western Gorge. Honestly, I wouldn’t put money on that prediction, as there’s a bit low pressure system off the coast, and the wind is inconsistent, at best, with that setup.

We’ll continue with an offshore low pressure pattern through Friday or so.

On the coast, the northerlies are on vacation. Expect the following conditions (north/central/south) today: light/S 10-15/S 10-15. NW swell 2’@7. Tomorrow: S 5-10 everywhere. SW swell 3′ @ 20. Wednesday: Light SE wind everywhere. SW swell 3′ @ 19. Surf’s up!
 


Today’s Gorge Wind – these are ranges for the average speed, not a predicted wind range. =)
Your favorite beach Dawn
Patrol
9am-
11:30a
11:30a-
3pm
3pm-
dusk
Rooster’s Rocks E 23-26 E 23-26 E 15-18 E 10-13
Steven’s Locks E 19-23 E 19-23 E 15-18 E 5-10
Hatchery/White Salmon Sandbar (minus a few for Hood River) E 5-10 E 5-10 light glassy
Doug’s, Lyle, Rowena E 5-10 E 5-10 light glassy
Rufus, etc. light light light light
Roosevelt, etc. light light light light
Temira’s sail: 35-40: 2.9 / 30-35: 3.2 / 26-30: 3.5
23-26: 4.0 / 20-23: 4.5 less than 20: something bigger!
Tonia’s kite: 35-40: 4m / 30-35: 4-6m / 26-30: 5-7m
23-26: 7-9m / 20-23: 8-10 / 15-20: 10-12 / 10-15: 13-15.

Gorge Weather

It’s a smoky morning in the Gorge, and not just because of the smoke from the 36 Pit fire near Estacada. There’s another small fire near the mouth of the White Salmon, and that’s what I’m looking at as I write this forecast. So, we will have a smoky, sunny morning to start the week, and then a weather system off the coast will trigger some cumulus clouds and a very slight chance of thunder and lightning over the Cascades this afternoon. No rain. Temps will be in the upper 40’s this morning and upper 80’s this afternoon. Expect a colorful sunset tonight!

Tomorrow starts with a colorful sunrise from high clouds coupled with low marine clouds in the western Gorge. Temps will be in the mid 50’s early and mid 80’s in the afternoon. Wednesday looks sunny, or possibly partly cloudy, with temps in the mid 50’s early and low 80’s in the afternoon.
 

White Sprinter Van of the Day – Photo by Terrydactyl

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Road and Mountain Biking

The mountain biking trails are still dusty, and they can still be fun that way, and there’s a chance of rain later this week. In the meantime, the road biking is great. I did the Glenwood-BZ loop yesterday, and there was zero wind. It was spectacular. Double-Mountain views, not many cars, and my friend Judy pedaling along in the middle of nowhere. It was a good day. And I had good company. I recommend riding that loop today, counterclockwise.
 


The Clymb: free membership. Cheap gear.
Temira approves. Click to join.

 

River Levels / Fish Counts/Cheezburger Update

The John Day Dam is reading 60-83kcfs. The Dalles Dam is putting out 98kcfs. The White Salmon is at 1.75′. There is a new nearly river-wide log on the Middle White Salmon just after the cave on river left. According to Cheezburger, it’s actually a huge tree with 40′ high branches. So, there is a huge tree just below Cave Rapid on the MWS. There is also a river-wide log about 150 yards below Cave Wave on the Lower White Salmon. The Columbia River is 68 degrees. There were 32,800 Chinook, 10,500 Coho and 3500 Steehead over Bonneville on Saturday.
 

Hood River Adventures – Bike Shuttles, Fishing Trips & More…

Hood River Adventures is a local company owned by Drew Scharns, master guide specializing in fishing tours, mountain bike shuttles, and well as brewery and winery tours. Biologists predict this is going to be the biggest salmon run since 1938. Get some of it: Spend a day with Drew on the Columbia fishing for salmon, steelhead, and sturgeon or try fly fishing on the Klickitat. Feeling active? Head to the trails for shuttle laps with end-of-day car retrieval. Want to taste the local libations? Take a brewery or winery tour with HRA: no more arguments over who’s going to be the designated driver – that’s Drew’s job! Fish counts are way up. Call Drew if you want to go: 541-400-1216
 

Events – email me if I’ve missed any outdoor-related events

We’ve got community yoga, free or by donation at Yoga Samadhi in White Salmon tonight. Tomorrow night there’s a downriver race on the Whtie Salmon, leaving Husum at 6, there’s triathlon practice at Mayer Park at 6:15, and there’s pickup rugby at the Hood River Marina at 5:30. Tomorrow’s the last Ruins Tuesday of the year, with Tony Smiley playing outside at Springhouse – it’s free if you’re there by 7pm.

Coming up next weekend, it’s the Northwest Homesteading Fair in Lyle on Saturday. On Sunday, Hood River has the Gorge Kids Triathlon and Gorge Owned has a Sense of Place lecture on the Lower-Lower White Salmon.

Have an awesome day today!

Temira

By Temira

Temira Lital is a recreation and travel weather forecaster based in Hood River, Oregon. Temira uses they/them pronouns. They're also a mental health counselor. Temira bikes, skis, windsurfs, paddles a SUP, swims in mountain lakes, and loves gardening. Most recently they've taken up SUP foiling. Temira is powered by La Croix, protein, and beets.