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The Forecast
| 4a-8a | 8a-12p | 12p-4p | 4p-8p | 8p-4a | |
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| Thursday 5000′->6500′ |
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| Friday 6500′->4000′ |
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| Saturday 4000′->1500′ |
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Mt. Hood Weather Forecast
The forecast for the next four days goes something like this: mixed precip with plenty of rain for Thursday and Friday daytime. Late Friday night, the precip switches to snow and stays cold enough for snow through the middle of next week. Significant snow is forecast Friday night into Sunday morning. Here’s the thing: if you want the powder on Sunday, your only option is Timberline. Meadows finishes up their season with Friday and Saturday. Teacup will be grooming Saturday and Sunday, and then they’re done for the season too. The closure of these areas will not stop snow from accumulating!
Let’s look at Thursday. We have a weak tap into tropical moisture and a weak atmospheric river. The snow level will fall to 6000′ or so this morning, rise to 6500′ this afternoon, and drop to 5500-6000′ overnight. So, 5000′ forecast is mostly rain with mixed precip tossed in. Little to no accumulation. During the day, about 0.4” water equivalent (WE) falls. That’s rain or a mix at 5000′ and a few inches of snow up high. Ditto overnight. Same totals, same outcome. Wind: SW 20-35 in the morning, WSW 30-40 this evening, and SW 20-30 after midnight.
On Friday, the snow level will be 6000′-6500′ in the morning, 5500′ in the afternoon, and 4000′ after midnight. About 0.5” WE is forecast during the day. That’ll probably be rain or snain with no accumulation at 5000′. 3-4” up high. Overnight, orographics kick in and add 1.1” WE to the mix. That starts as mixed precip and transitions to snow, becoming a bit less dense after midnight. Call it 5-6” new by daybreak. Wind: SW 20-30 during the day, WSW 20-25 in the evening, and a nice orographic boost of W 30 overnight.
Saturday will be the storm skiing day you didn’t expect in May. The snow level will be 4000 in the morning, 2500′ in the afternoon, and 1500′ after midnight. About 1.0” WE is forecast during the day, for 9-11” new. Another 0.2” to 0.3” WE is forecast overnight, for 2-4” additional powder. Wind: W 30 early, NW 35 mid-morning, W 35 in the afternoon, and W 20 overnight. Looking deeper into the forecast, we see temps stay below freezing at 5000′ through Wednesday with continued flurries. What the actual… May?
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
Not much wind is forecast the next couple of days, but Saturday’s starting to look like a nuker. For Thursday, we’ll have low pressure overhead and drizzle most places most of the day. For the most part, we’ll just have light westerlies, but if you head east of The Dalles or perhaps east of Rufus (where it will be drizzly), you’ll find gusty 15-18 until late afternoon. After that, the wind goes calm. You are not desperate enough to chase wind of this low quality. Do something else. River flow is 162kcfs, river temp is 51F, and high temp forecast is 57F.
Friday brings all sorts of rain from all sorts of directions with downpours in the afternoon, hail, and perhaps some thunder. The wind starts calm. From mid-morning on, you’ll find gusty 10-13 from Stevenson to The Dalles. In the afternoon, the western Gorge goes calm. East of The Dalles, you’ll find gusty 18-23 for a few hours followed by calm wind in the evening all through the Gorge (or maybe light westerly?). High temp: 56F.
The Oregon High School sailing state championships happen Saturday 11am-5pm between Wells Island and the sandbar. Please avoid the area. Saturday sees a low pressure system move inland with transient, but strong, high pressure building offshore. Forecast: gusty 30-35 from Viento to Arlington midday with Stevenson at 25-29 and Threemile at 28-32. The strongest wind fills in to Threemile and Boardman in the afternoon. High temp: 54F. Go get this one. Sunday: current forecast is light westerly or calm. That’s good, because you’ll need a rest day after Saturday.
Coast, Jones, Coast
Done until spring, unless there’s an obvious Coast or Sauvie’s or Jones day.
Hood River Weather Forecast
Overcast sky this morning stays that way today with bits of drizzle. Rain arrives in the evening and sticks around for a few hours. Temps will be in the upper 50’s all day. Light westerlies. 14% chance of rainbows. Friday will be rainy with downpours, hail, and thunder possible in the afternoon. Temps will be in the mid 40’s early and mid 50’s later. Light westerlies. 99% chance of rainbows. Saturday will be mostly cloudy with intermittent sprinkles during the day and rain in the afternoon. Temps will be in the mid 40’s early and mid 50’s later. Strong to very strong westerlies. 89% 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
Courtney Road (the road that goes up above Syncline) is closed until October. Do not attempt to use it to access trails. We’re expecting a ton of rain starting today (Thursday), and all trails will be too muddy to ride. If you ride them, you will do significant and potentially permanent damage. Please don’t. Hospital Hill: cows are out – no dogs allowed. Underwood: do not enter areas that are closed due to logging operations. Post: snow on the upper part of Eldorado. Recommendation: ride gravel roads and pavement for a while until the trail systems dry out.
Local Events
Please let me know about events. I often only hear about them if you folx let me know!
The Oregon High School sailing state championships happen Saturday 11am-5pm between Wells Island and the sandbar. Please avoid the area. Ferment’s Tuesday night 4-mile walk/run is at 6pm. At 7:15am on Wednesdays, there’s a run from the White Salmon Bakery. At 7am on Friday morning, you can get a donut and coffee for going for a run at Kickstand Coffee. The Small Boat paddlers have a group paddle on Sunday at 11am at the Event Site. The Dirty Fingers Sunday Service rides happens at 9am – this week is the last one. They are fast-paced. If you are not, bring a buddy. The ride is followed by bike race viewing and beer drinking at the shop. Post and Pint happens Thursday evenings at 5:30 when Post is not too wet to ride.
Sprinter Van of the Week!
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Have an awesome day!
