weather - The Gorge is my Gym

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Random Morning Thoughts

I used to enjoy writing forecasts for chaotic weather days. But we’ve had so many this year already and so little snow on the mountain that I’m getting depressed writing these chaotic forecasts now. Somebody do something about this weather, please!

Mt. Hood Snow Forecast – 5000′
Friday
Saturday
Sunday

Mt. Hood Snow Forecast

I’ve been watching the temps on Mt. Hood jump all over the place for the last two hours. In the last hour, the temp at 5000′ went from 20° to 30°. This is not a good sign for the precip type with the first round of precip. I’m calling it freezing rain and sleet, not snow (that should ensure it snows). So, expect .2-.3” water value (WV) mixed wet precip between 7am and 1pm, followed by another 1-1.5” r**n between 1pm today and 1am Saturday, after which we may just see a switch to snow, with .1-.3” WV giving us 1-3” of new Saturday morning.

The snow level will be 8000′ by 10am today, 10,000′ around 4pm, 7000′ at 10pm, falling to 4500′ by 4am Saturday. Wind today was SE 5-15 early, but just switched as I was writing this. Expect rapidly increasing NW wind today, hitting 45-50 by 7am, 55 by 10am, and NW 60+ by 1pm. The wind will slowly fade to NW 50 overnight.

Saturday morning starts with (hopefully) a little bit of new snow on the ground, with mostly cloudy sky and orographic snow flurries. The snow level will be 4500′ early, 3000′ midday, and then we’ll see warmer air move in, giving us temps around 2°C between 3000′ and 7000′, meaning we could see sprinkles or flurries. Probably wet flurries. Total precip on Saturday will be .1-.2” WV between 4am and 4pm, for less than 1” of snow. Wind Saturday will be NW 50 early, NNW 35+ midday and NNW 30 in the evening.

Sunday looks partly to mostly cloudy with a few sprinkles or flurries in the morning and sprinkles in the afternoon, with less than .2” WV during the day. The snow level will be 7500’ish for much of the day, rising to 10,000′ in the evening. Wind will be NW 30 all day, dropping to WNW 20 in the evening.

Plain Old Local Weather

Looks like the west wind won out over the sub-freezing temps, meaning we’ll be spared the trouble of an ice storm today. Maybe a few wet snowflakes or some sleet will mix with the incoming rain, but that’s all we’ll see. So, expect a wet day in the Gorge today: sprinkles this morning and heavier rain after 1pm with strong west wind. Tomorrow brings low clouds and temps in the 40’s. Sunday looks cloudy with temps in the 40’s and a chance of sprinkles.

Gorge Wind Forecast

As of 5am, there was already .07 PDX-DLS and .03 DLS-PSC, with the wind in the low 20’s near Hood River. Expect the wind to ramp up to gusty 30-40 through the whole Gorge today by midday, nuking through sunset. Saturday starts with W 21-24 east of Hood River, fading to 15-18 in the afternoon, with less wind near Hood River. Looks like we’ll start with W 15-18 on Sunday, picking up to 23-26 east of Hood River in the afternoon.

Road and Mountain Biking

Gorge 400?

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

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

There’s not much going on tonight, other than a party I’m going to in The Dalles, but coming up Saturday, Dirty Fingers has the KringleKrawl, a SantaCon bike ride to the pubs of Hood River. Sounds dangerous. In Cascade Locks on Saturday night, the DimWits have a winter solstice ride from 5-9pm at the EasyCLIMB. This only sounds dangerous because it will be dark. But that’s why they make lights.

Have an awesome day today!

Temira

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Random Morning Thoughts

Only a few days from the shortest day of the year. It’s going to get better soon, people. In the meantime, get out and take evening and morning photos in the best Magic Hour light of the year!

Mt. Hood Snow Forecast – 5000′
Thursday
Friday
Saturday

Mt. Hood Snow Forecast

We had some snow flurries overnight, and that makes me happy. I’d be happier if we had 2 feet of new, but snow flurries are better than no flurries! We’ll see clear sky for much of the day today, becoming cloudy in the evening. The free air freezing level (FAF) will be at the surface all day. Wind will be NE 15-20 early, going to N 20 in the afternoon and NW 25 overnight.

Fascinating Friday starts with snowfall (or less likely, freezing rain) around 1am, as a warm and wet and sub-tropical airmass swings over the top of entrenched cold, dry air. Be glad we aren’t further north, because that’s where the bulk of the moisture is headed (sorry, Crystal). Anyway, temps will stay sub-freezing at 5000′ until mid-morning, when the FAF/snow level will jump to 7500′, rising further to nearly 10,000′ around 1pm. We’ll see .1-.3” water value (WV) before the snow levels rise, for a couple inches of very wet snow and/or a couple tenths of freezing rain. We’ll see another .8” WV after the rise, through 4pm, for rain, yucky rain. Then we’ll see another .6-.8” overnight, for more rain, yucky rain.

Wind on Friday will also be yucky: NW 30+ to start, rising to NW 50 by 7am, and rising further to NW 60-65 by 10am, and holding through 7pm, when the wind will start to drop. Wicked windy. Lift-stoppingly windy.

On Saturday morning, the snow level will drop briefly to 5000′, so we may see an inch or so of new, or maybe not. The snow level will rise to 7500′ by Saturday afternoon. We’ll see a few flurries or showers during the day Saturday, mostly in the morning, with less than .2” WV. Wind Saturday will be NW 35 early, NW 30 in the afternoon, and NNW 30+ overnight.

Right now, Sunday looks cloudy and warm, with the FAF at 7500′ in the morning and 10,000′ in the afternoon. Wind on Sunday will be in the NW 20-30 range.

Plain Old Local Weather

Today looks chilly and partly in the Gorge, with temps in the upper 20’s early and right around freezing in the afternoon, although I suspect it’ll be a little warmer than the models predict. No precip today.

Tomorrow morning is confusing me. Models are showing west wind at 10-15+ to start the day tomorrow with temps in the upper 20’s. This makes very little sense to this weather forecaster who is trying to determine if we’ll see snow and/or freezing rain Friday morning. I think the upper valley will see some snow, followed by freezing rain, less than .2” WV, between 4am and 10am, before powerful westerlies scour out the cold air. Down at river level, let’s call it a a trace of snow starting around 4am, then a trace of freezing rain, then ripping strong west wind warming us up by 10am. By afternoon, temps will be in the upper 40’s with rain.

Saturday brings low clouds and temps in the upper 40’s. Sunday looks a lot like Saturday.

Gorge Wind Forecast

We have a light westerly gradient this morning, but that will switch to light easterly by midday for easterlies at 10-15. Tomorrow starts with W 10-15, picking up to gusty W 30-40 by midday pretty much everywhere. Saturday brings W 21-24, strongest east of Hood River.

Road and Mountain Biking

I did road intervals on my Yelli Screamy hardtail 29’er yesterday. I also jumped off a lot of curbs in downtown HR. I think I want to learn how to do trials riding on that bike. It would be a good winter sport. Reports still have Post and Syncline as very muddy and heavily damaged by bike tires. I have no report for the 44 Road Trails and/or Dog River, but up Dog could be fun…

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

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

There’s pickup rugby at Henkle Middle School in White Salmon at 3:30 this afternoon. Coming up Saturday, Dirty Fingers has the Cold Lap Cross ride at 3pm, and the Dimwits have a winter solstice ride at EasyCLIMB at 5pm. They usually do a bonfire and suchstuff, so go check that out.

Have an awesome day today!

Temira