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The Forecast
| 4a-8a | 8a-12p | 12p-4p | 4p-8p | 8p-4a | |
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| Thursday 2000′ |
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| Friday 3000′ |
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| Saturday 3000′->4500′->1500′ |
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Mt. Hood Forecast
Partly cloudy sky on the mountain this morning combines with moderate to strong NW wind to squeeze a few flurries out of the relatively dry air. This pattern continues in some form all the way through Monday, after which we head into a colder, even drier pattern. As of now, there’s nothing too dramatic or dangerous, which is good. I’m off starting tomorrow through next Wednesday or so. Be nice to my housesitters!
Looking at Thursday morning, we see partly cloudy sky and intermittent flurries thanks to orographic clouds. The snow level will be 3000’ish (there’s an inversion, so it’s a little tricky). Approximately 0.5” water equivalent (WE) is forecast as flurries during the day and another 0.5” WE overnight. That’s an inch of new snow of undetermined quality due to the strange temp situation. Wind: NW 25-35 all day building to WNW 50 overnight.
Strong wind continues all day Friday potentially impacting lift speeds if not availability. It’ll be close. Models predict all sorts of snowfall amounts with the snow level at about 3000′. NWS is calling for an inch or so, but the GFS likes about 10” in the 24 hour period. Given the wind: WNW 50 in the morning, WNW 40 in the afternoon, and W 35 overnight, the mountain is going to squeeze everything possible out of the little available moisture. So… let’s call it .04” WE daytime and .03” WE overnight. Total guess. 6-8” new snow for the 24 hour period.
Strong wind continues on Saturday with a similar orographically-driven snowfall event. Once again, there’s not much moisture about and around. So, we’re guess. The snow level will be 3000′ early, 4000′ in the afternoon, and will plummet to 1500′ overnight. Call it 0.2” WE daytime, for a couple inches of standard-issue cascade snow. Another 0.2” WE is forecast overnight, for a couple more inches of increasingly dry snow. Wind: W 35 in the morning, WNW 50 in the afternoon (slowing some lifts, stopping others), and WNW 45 overnight.
The orographic (terrain-enhanced) snowfall and WNW wind continues on Sunday and Monday with the snow level at 1500′ Sunday and closer to 500-1000′ on Monday. Looking deeper into next week, we see a good chance of cold, dry air sweeping in from the E and NE. That will probably stop the snowfall and give us cold winter sunshine all across the land. You will be shredding fabulous packed powder, and I will be freezing my ass off on a meditation retreat. We’ll both be having a great time, and I will see you when I return, hopefully to a discussion of an exciting escape from that cold, dry pattern!
Note on wind speeds. Different wind directions are experienced in different ways on Mt. Hood. For example, west wind at 50mph will hit the slopes and exposed ridges at W 50. SW 50 may hit the ridges at SW 50, but will likely only be SW 20 below tree line. Hence the ranges for wind. Depends where you are on the mountain. Hopefully that helps clarify.
Gorge Wind Forecast
There’s a stiff breeze blowing at Viento this morning, and you don’t have to get up at the crack of dawn to take advantage of it. Westerlies stick around all day. And tomorrow. And the next day! Thursday starts with .07 and .03 gradients and 31mph at Viento with 12-15 everywhere else. Thanks for that info, iWindsurf. It appears we’ll see 12-15 most places in the western Gorge today with 25-28 from Avery to Arlington. River flow is 131kcfs, river temp is 40 degrees, and forecast high is 45.
Friday looks like W 26-30 pretty much all day long, but especially after the rain stops around 10am. It’s possible Swell to Bingen won’t benefit from this surge of westerlies, but everywhere else, from Stevenson to Boardman, should be windy. High temp: 50. Yay! Looking at Saturday, we see 13-16 to start. Afternoon wind: gusty 23-26 in the western Gorge (with showers or light rain), and 28-33 east of The Dalles. Lighter wind is forecast on Sunday, and then we move into a colder period of east wind.
Coast, Jones, Sauvie’s
As needed until next spring and summer.
Hood River Weather Forecast
Partly cloudy sky this morning probably turns mostly cloudy later. Drizzle falls overnight. Temps will be in the low 40’s early and mid 40’s later. Moderate to strong westerlies. 89% chance of rainbows. Friday looks mostly cloudy. Temps will be near 40 early and near 50 later. Drizzle in the morning ends by about 10am. Strong westerlies. 99% chance of rainbows. Saturday looks mostly cloudy with drizzly early and sprinkles much of the day. Temps will be in the low 40’s early and near 50 later. Moderate to strong westerlies. 99% 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.
Cycling
We are in winter riding season, and the trails are apt to be fragile. If it was below freezing last night and is above freezing now, don’t ride. If it was below freezing last night and it is sunny now, don’t ride unless you are under a tree canopy for the entire ride. Freeze-thaw conditions, when ridden upon, result in permanent trail damage. Please consider doing something else, perhaps riding a gravel road in the trees or going to the mountain. Thank you!
Sprinter Van of the Week!
Click here for the Sprinter Van map of the world!!!
Local Events
Weekly events: The Kainos Coffee run happens in The Dalles every Tuesday morning at 6am. There are sailboat races at the Hood River Marina every Wednesday evening. Dirty Fingers has a group mountain bike ride (bring lights) Wednesday nights at 5:30pm. Cheno has an outdoor HIIT workout at Griffin House in Hood River at 6pm on Wednesday nights. There is a BLM rally every Tuesday evening at 5:30 at the Salmon Fountain in Hood River, and there’s a White Coats for BLM rally every Thursday at noon at 12th and May in Hood River. Have an awesome day!
