Thursday: not the rest day you were looking for!

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

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The Forecast

Your favorite beach	Dawn Patrol	9am- 11:30a	11:30a- 3pm	3pm- dusk
Today’s Gorge Wind – these are ranges for the average speed, not a predicted wind range. =)
Rooster Rock	sunny	buns	afternoon	moons
Steven’s Locks	7-10	10-13	13-16+	20-23
Viento	22-25	22-25	22-25	22-25
Swell-Hood River	22-25	22-25	22-25	22-25
Lyle to Doug’s	13-16	13-16	18-21	22-25
Rufus, etc.	13-16	13-16	10-13	7-10
Roosevelt & Arlington	13-16	13-16	10-13	7-10

Gorge Wind Forecast

Yesterday was quite the windy day on the river – 30+ from Mosier to Rufus with 35+ for a period of time at The Wall. Speaking of… we did a little iWind/iKite sensor checking while we were there yesterday. When I arrived, the sensor read 261 degrees. It was perfect. Steady. Straight down the river. While I was there, we observed readings of 222 and 24x. It was slightly gustier, but very strong and still awesome with huge swell. For you windsurfers, when I arrived, averages were bouncing around between 27 and 31. People were on 3.7. Other-sport folks, translate that. Maybe 2.4 for wing? Maybe smaller? Not sure for kites? Anyway, hopefully that’s helpful information and a good reminder that iWind/iKite sensors are super helpful! And hopefully those sensor readings will help you plan going forward! Now, on to the forecast, which won’t be quite as nuking but also isn’t not-windy.

Thursday starts out with a chilly 50 degree teen-strength breeze. Pressures read 30.10-30.00-29.98 to start the day for gradients of 0.10 and 0.02. Interpretation: stay in the Corridor. Forecast discussion: partly cloudy sky sticks around to the west today, and temps rise about 5 degrees over yesterday in sunny locations. We’ll have a quick build to 22-25 from Stevenson to Mosier with 11-14 to The Dalles. Afternoon wind fills in to 22-25 from Stevenson to Doug’s with 14-17 or so at Avery. It’s worth noting that if western Gorge clouds stick around longer than expected, wind speeds will be higher than forecast. River flow yesterday was 225-260kcfs, river temp is 60F (why are my toes still cold?), and high temp is 73F.

Another chilly, breezy start is forecast for Friday. Expect 17-20 from Stevenson to Mosier in the morning. Midday westerlies pick up to 20-23 from Stevenson to Doug’s with 12-15 at Avery. Afternoon – the wind will shift a bit east. The Corridor drops to 13-16, and Mosier to Avery hold at 20-23. High temp: 77F under sunny sky.

Saturday’s going to be a bit warmer, but it’ll still be breezy. Thanks to heating in the metro area, we’ll probably have a midday lull. Don’t you worry – late afternoon desert heat will drive some steady dessert thermals. Ha. See what I did there? The day starts with 18-21 dawn patrol from Stevenson to Mosier with 11-14 east to Arlington. Ignore that morning eastern Gorge breeze, because it’s just a morning illusion. Midday wind drops to 11-14 from Stevenson to Hood River and turns light/variable to the east. Starting mid-afternoon, as desert heating kicks in and the heat low develops, we’ll see a slow and steady build west of The Dalles. Evening wind will be 21-24 from Stevenson to Doug’s. High temp: 82F.

Models are all over the place for wind near Rowena on Sunday, so don’t place your chips on that section of the table. Instead, plan for somewhere between Stevenson and Mosier. Models are liking the idea of desert heating really outpacing the metro area. If this happens, we’ll have mid 20’s from Stevenson to Hood River or Mosier. In other words, this weekend, despite increasing temps, is definitely not a wash! Looking at Monday, we have some dawn patrol wind, but a light afternoon. Tuesday just looks hot and calm. After Tuesday, details are less clear, so let’s leave it. Have fun!

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Jones, Sauvie’s, Coast

Wind speed in knots. Direction Northerly unless otherwise noted for Coast. Westerly for Jones. Northerly for Sauvie Island. North/Central/South, waves. Wave forecast provided by NWS. Thursday: 10-15/15-20/30-35, NW swell 5′ at 10 seconds. Friday: NW10-15/N10-15/25-30, NW 4′ @ 9. Saturday: 20-25+/20-25/30-35+, W 4′ @ 10. Jones Thursday: 18-21. Friday: 17-20. Saturday: 23-26. Sauvie Island Thursday: 11-14. Friday: 14-17. Saturday: 16-19. Note: coastal wind should continue for the early part of next week. That would be a nice place to beat the heat!

Mt. Hood Snow Forecast

On vacation until fall unless something extraordinary happens.

Hood River Weather Forecast

Clear sky this morning sticks around all day. Temps will be near 50 early and in he low 70’s later. Moderate westerlies. No rainbows. Friday will be mostly clear. Temps start in the upper 40’s and end in the upper 70’s. Moderate westerlies. No rainbows. Saturday will be clear and then partly high overcast. Temps start near 50 and end in the low 80’s. Moderate westerlies early, light midday, moderate in the evening. No 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.

Local-ish Events

Please let me know of outdoor-related local-ish events. If you don’t tell me, I don’t know! June 10th is the Gorge Adventure Race in White Salmon. Multi-discipline = multi-sport day.

Regular weekly events: NK Studios in Bingen has a donation-based yoga class at 7:30am every Tuesday. 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. 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 above Ferment Brewing.

Regular bike rides (thanks to the Hood River Area Trail Stewards for collecting). Tuesday is Mountain View’s ride. Meet at 5:45pm on Post Canyon Drive where the pavement ends. Wednesday is the Evo/Kickstand all-ability, no-drop Post Canyon ride. 5:30 from the shop or join along the way. All abilities welcome. Thursday is Mountain View’s women’s ride. 5:30pm, Seven Streams Trailhead. No drop. Thursday is also the Dirty Fingers Post and Pint. 5:30 from the shop or later at Family Man. This is hardcore, race-pace. Saturday morning is the Mountain View road/gravel ride. Two hours. 12-14mph average speed. Starting May 6th, Oregon Ebikes has the women’s ride at 8:30am. Meet at Seven Streams parking lot for a 1.5 to 2 hour ride.

Cycling

Post is clear of snow to the top. Dog River and Surveyor’s are clear per my friend who rode them on 5/27. Bottle Prairie, 8 Mile, and Super Connector are open. Super Duper Connector is open. There is still snow on a short section of Surveyor’s between the Cooks Meadow intersection and Dog River. Nestor Peak is clear of snow. Falls Creek isn’t even close! Cows are in on Hospital Hill. That means dogs are no longer allowed. Even if your dog is cool. Even if you’re a local. Even if … you get the picture! Hospital Hill is private land. Please respect the wishes of the landowners – they’re generous enough to let folks use that land, and dogs have been shot there before. Please don’t ride muddy trails, or you’ll do permanent damage. Always remember to consider gravel riding! If you’re parking at Post Canyon, you will need a parking pass. Those can be purchased at many local shops or online.

Valuable Advice for Gardeners Inhabiting Neighboring Areas

Valuable Advice for Gardeners Inhabiting Neighboring Areas: with cool weather in the forecast for at least a few days, it’s a great time to get more seeds in the ground. It’s also a great time to plant. Plants like cool weather. But maybe wait until after today’s windstorm, because plants don’t like nuking westerlies any more than you do! Those of you planting sweet potatoes (yes, you can grown them in the lowlands here) will want to plant those slips like you plant tomatoes – deep. Bury them up to their last set of leaves. They’ll make lots of roots, and lots of roots make for healthy plants that make lots of sweet potatoes. Happy gardening.