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Christmas Eve forecast



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Good morning!

If you would like to hit the Columbia for some windsurfing or kiting this morning, you have your chance. The gradient is at east .23, enough for 30+ at Stevenson and 40+ for Rooster. Easterlies slowly fade through tomorrow, switching to west winds on Sunday morning. It’s a balmy 40 degrees in Stevenson this morning, so you should be plenty warm. Enjoy.

Because of the east winds, it’s going to stay near freezing in the Gorge for the next 48 hours. Expect a mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain, At the most, we’ll see 2-3” of snow in the Gorge. At the worst, we’ll see a nice coating of ice. Yes, I know it’s 35 degrees this morning, but there’s a good chance evaporative cooling will drop the temp a couple of degrees, so I still think snow is likely.

This morning looks dry on the mountain until about 10am when light precipitation should move in. Light precip will continue to fall until tomorrow morning around 10am. I think we’ll see snow at first, but the inverted temperatures this morning are a big concern for freezing rain, sleet, and/or rain. Rain showers, at least at HRM base, and possibly to the top of Mt. Hood Express, are likely. Total water value between now and Saturday morning will be .25-.4”, for a total of 2-4” of snow at higher elevations. Light SSW wind this morning builds to SSW 20-30 by 1pm.

Tomorrow starts of with the snow level around 6000’, rising to 7000’ during the day and then falling during the evening. Light precip before 9am gives way to a dry, cloudy day. Precip returns around 7pm, mostly likely in the form of snow, with the snow level around 5000’. Winds on the slopes tomorrow will be 15-25mph early, building to 30-40mph by midday.

The snow level on Sunday starts off around 5000 feet, falling to 3000 feet during the day. We’ll see 2-3” of snow Saturday night into Sunday morning, and then 4-6” between 7am and 4pm. Winds start off at SSW 25-30mph Sunday morning, fading to WSW 15-25mph and then building to WSW 25-30 Sunday evening.

Snow falls pretty much all night Sunday and all day Monday, with snow levels at 3000 feet or so, for a nice powder day on Monday. Winds will be W 15-25mph.

The jet stream takes aim at the PNW through the middle of next week, for more snow every day.

Have an awesome day today!

Temira

p.s. If you find this report useful, entertaining, or just want to recognize all the hard work that goes into it, please take the time to make a donation by clicking on the button at the bottom of the page. For a suggested donation of $10, I’ll add you to the email version of this list ‘til November 2011, putting you in the running for cool prizes donated by the weekly sponsors.

Categories
Forecast

12/20 Forecast



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Good morning!

Whew. The weekend is killing the forecast. If anyone out there wants a low-paying job filling in on the weekend, that would be great. And hey, if anyone out there is interested in an okay-paying job occasionally filling in on the radio next summer, shoot me an email. You must have some familiarity with wind sports and wind forecasting, and you must be able to articulate. Reliable individuals only. Oh, wait, did I just ask for a reliable wind junkie? 😉

Moving on to the forecast…

It’s snowing in the Gorge, yet again. Frozen precipitation will continue over the next couple of days as strong offshore low pressure systems combine with cold, high pressure desert air to keep Gorge temps right around freezing.

We’ll see intermittent snow showers down to river level today. Tomorrow looks dry, with a good chance of sun on the mountain and an even better chance of The Gloom in the Gorge. We’ll see a few more inches of snow Wednesday morning, before a switch to rain Wednesday afternoon.

Up on Mt. Hood, there will be more snow, with true snow levels around 2000-2500 feet. Isn’t that strange how I combine the words “Gorge” and “snow” and you frown and I combine the words “Mt. Hood” and “snow” and you smile? Today brings 2-3 inches between now and midnight with winds increasing to 20-25mph. Tomorrow looks dry on Mt. Hood, with partly cloudy skies and winds at 5-10mph. Another front rolls in Wednesday morning for a total of 4-6” between 7am and 3pm with winds at 15-20mph.

In wind news, it’s windy. If you’re nuts, feel free to head down to Rooster or Stevenson today and tomorrow for 30+mph. If you’re hoping for lighter easterlies combined with rain, hold out until Wednesday for 25-30 fading to 10-15 by afternoon.

Models are showing a warming (but drying) trend towards the end of the week, but they’re also inconsistent, so I’ll hold off on forecasting anything past the 72 hour mark (always a good call).

There’s a full lunar eclipse tonight starting at 9:27pm. You won’t be able to see it from the Gorge, due to the inversion gloom, but there’s a chance you’ll be able to see it from elsewhere in Oregon or Washington. Tomorrow is the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year (well okay, all days are 24 hours, but the solstice has the least daylight), when we celebrate the return of daylight!

Have an awesome day today!

Temira

p.s. If you find this report useful, entertaining, or just want to recognize all the hard work that goes into it, please take the time to make a donation by clicking on the button at the bottom of the page. For a suggested donation of $10, I’ll add you to the email version of this list ‘til November 2011, putting you in the running for cool prizes donated by the weekly sponsors.