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Sunday: several days of snow for Mt. Hood. Several days of west wind for the Gorge.

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

Mt. Hood Snow Forecast – 5000′
Snow level 4a-8a 8a-12p 12p-4p 4p-8p 8p-4a
Saturday
4500′->3000′
Sunday
3000′->2000′
Monday
2000′->3000′->1500′

Mt. Hood Snow Forecast

Winter continues to make a last-ditch April appearance. We’ll be picking up some snow over the next several days. Starting Thursday, some models offer up an extended period of too-warm-for-snow weather (about 60%), and some ensemble members (about 40%) offer up cooler weather with the potential for more snow on the mountain. It’s worth noting that models struggle with precip amounts on Mt. Hood (and in the Gorge) this time of year. We’ll also see instability over the next several days, and that’ll render predictions even less trustworthy. For example, NWS is calling for 2-8” new snow. That’s a big spread, eh? Let’s see what I found in the latest model runs…

For Sunday, we’ll see light snowfall during the day and moderate snowfall overnight as orographics aid in accumulation. The snow level will fall to 3500′ by afternoon and as low as 2000′ overnight when temps at 850mb (~5000′) drop to -4C. This gives us 0.1” to 0.2” water equivalent of snow during the day. That’s 1-2”. Overnight, models call for 0.3” to 0.4” WE for 3-4” of increasingly dry new snow. Wind will aid in accumulation by blowing WSW 35 all day and turning to W 35 overnight.

Moderate snowfall continues on Monday. The snow level starts around 2000′, rises to 3000′ in the afternoon, and drops to as low as 1500′ overnight. About 0.3” WE falls during the day for 2-4” new. Overnight, 0.2” WE is forecast for a couple more inches of fluffy snow. Wind: W 35 in the morning, W 30 in the afternoon, and WSW 30 overnight.

A couple more inches of new snow are forecast Tuesday morning, but the afternoon gets complicated: significant instability may be present. That could drive random bursts of snow over the mountain. During this period, the snow level will rise from 2000′ to 4500′. I’m not going to make a guess about snow accumulation as thunderstorms, if we have them, will be randomly distributed. Wind: WSW 25-30 in the morning, NW 20-30 in the afternoon, and NNW 25 overnight. Wednesday looks partly cloudy in the morning and sunny in the afternoon with temps at 5000′ rising to the upper 30’s. After that, your guess is as good as mine. There’s just too much variation in the models. All in all, ensembles are calling for 1.25” to 2.0” total water equivalent between now and Tuesday. Given the wet bias in the models this time of year, I’d say half of that is possible. That would still work out to 8-12” total new snow. Fingers crossed. Have a great day today!  

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Gorge Wind Forecast

Hi friends! The wind has been all over the place already this morning, and it’s only 8:30 as I write this. Pressures at 8am were 30.13/30.08/30.03 for gradients of 0.05 and 0.05. Wind was in the 16-20 range from Swell to Rufus with 10-13 from Stevenson to Viento and also out at Arlington. As a system swings through, high pressure holds off northern California, and the desert heats up just a bit, we’ll see the westerlies heat up. Expect even more wind tomorrow with the caveat that we’ll have instability. It appears we’ll also have “enough” west wind on Tuesday and Wednesday with instability potentially decreasing quality and reliability on Tuesday.

By noon on Sunday, we should see the wind rise to 23-26 from Avery to Arlington with up-and-down 15-18 from Viento or Swell to Doug’s. Stevenson will likely remain drizzly, or at least intermittently drizzly, all day long. Afternoon wind rises to 27-30 from Avery to Arlington and 23-26 east of Arlington to Boardman. Models suggest that areas west of Mosier will drop to 11-14 after 2pm. River flow over the last 24 hours was 162-190kcfs at John Day, which is reasonable. River temp is 52.88F. High temp forecast is 58F for Hood River and 61F for Arlington, where patchy blowing dust is forecast.

Monday kicks off with 10-13 all the way from Stevenson to Arlington. We’ll also have drizzle to Biggs early in the day, but that should back off and hold west of Hood River after 11am. After noon, or perhaps after 2pm, westerlies rise to 16-19 from Viento to Doug’s with 28-33 from Avery to Arlington. High temp: 53F for Hood River and 56F for Arlington. Models suggest a light wind, drizzly start to Tuesday with 22-25 from Stevenson to Rufus in the afternoon. Caveat: significant surface-based instability could affect wind quality and consistency. High temp: 55F. Wednesday looks similar, but will probably have less instability. Beyond that, models are 60/40 on the general picture, meaning there’s no way to make a reliable forecast. Have fun out there the next couple of days!  

 

Jones, Sauvie’s, Coast Forecast – On vacation ‘til summer unless otherwise noted

 

Very basic Hood River weather forecast. Don’t plan your life around this. You really should read Temira’s Awesome Travel Advisory Service on Facebook

Mostly cloudy sky this morning turns partly cloudy this afternoon with intermittent showers all day. Temps start in the upper 40s and rise to the upper 50s. Moderate westerlies. 100% chance of rainbows. Monday starts with drizzle and turns mostly cloudy with a slight chance of thunderstorms. Temps start near 40 and rise to the low 50s. Moderate westerlies. 99% chance of rainbows. Tuesday will be rainy in the morning and mostly cloudy with a chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon. Temps start in the upper 30s and rise to the mid 50’s. Light wind early. Moderately strong westerlies in the afternoon. 99% chance of rainbows.  

Local-ish Events

Please let me know of outdoor-related local-ish events. If you don’t tell me, I don’t know!

Regular weekly events:. NK Studio’s by-donation Tuesday morning yoga class is back. 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. The Tri Club is done for the season. 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 about Ferment Brewing.  

Cycling

Cows are out on Hospital Hill. NO DOGS. That means you, all of you, even your dog that’s [insert adjective]. No dogs. Do not risk access for everyone. No parking at the corral. Whoopdee flowers are in full bloom. Hospital Hill and Syncline have ticks, oaks, and flowers. Columbia Hills is full of flowers and open to your bike. It’s trail-building season. Get on the HRATS mailing list if you’d like to help out. If you’re parking at Post Canyon, you will need a parking pass. Those can be purchased at many local shops or online.  

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Have an awesome day!

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.