A Special Day for our Nation, both in Presidential Transition and in memory of a great man.  What about the weather?  Well, a very rare chance for SNOW tomorrow across the shoreline of the Gulf States, to include New Orleans, Biloxi, Mobile, Pensacola.  BUT, you are here for the PNW weather, so let’s get to it, shall we?  

East winds over the weekend have really chilled down west side locations (21F now in Albany); colder air mass is possible late this week, so be ready.  In the meantime, expect the fog-clearing east wind to diminish, with foggy bottoms possible again this week.  By Thu night, a cold air mass is modeled to drop in from the north, which should clear the sky and usher in another round of sub-freezing overnight temps.  Some locations are likely to be 4-8 degrees colder than the current pattern, esp east side, by Fri/Sat nights.  STRONG Fraser Gap wind may develop late Fri into the weekend; much less so for the Columbia Gorger outflow.  Per the above cold air mass, we do not see much precipitation with this cold air, so other than a few clouds - maybe even a flurry on either side of the Cascades, nothing of note this weekend, Jan 25,26.  Oh yeah, DRY all week.

The week of Jan 27 - 31 looks DRY again everyday.  Foggy bottoms may return, as the colder air slowly warms around the region, with limited breezes.  (The northern half of Vancouver Is. could get a shower late Fri night to end January; a few clouds over the Puget Sound, as well.)

February.  Onshore flow will ‘warm’ the area during the first weekend of Feb.  STILL DRY.   A ‘blocking’ ridge of High pressure over the Gulf of Alaska will continue to hold off Pacific storm as the month of February gets underway.  Therefore, we forecast DRY conditions continuing through at least Thu Feb 7.    

From the ’Net: “I love board games. My favorite is where people put meat and cheese on a board; maybe some fruit and crackers. I’m so good at that one!”

Political change ahead; no change in the weather — expect dry conditions for the next 18 days!

The weather of late has been bland.  Looks like that will remain the case through approx. Jan 26.  Here’s the latest.

Chilly fog has dominated certain regions of the PNW primarily because there has been little ‘wind’ to stir things up.  The main change this weekend will be an increasing offshore flow component - wind - that will aid in clearing away the fog bank, but at the same time, dropping temperatures to the coldest of the season, to date.  Expect temps to fall into the 20s in nearly all west side locations by early next week.  Chilly afternoons, too.  East wind out of the Gaps, but not too strong.  Dry.

The fog clearing air flow will diminish again mid-week for 24-36 hrs — expect foggy bottoms to possibly return.  However, that will be short-lived, as the east winds will pick up again, based on High pressure building over the Continental Divide.  (NOTE: this development will really mess with firefighting in California, as the east winds could ramp up significantly by the end of next week.).  Afternoon temps should be a bit warmer than that of early next week, as the weekend of Jan 25,26 unfolds.  Dry.

Weekend of Jan 25,26: models indicate a weak system may approach the region from the the west, so our first chance for precipitation in quite some time takes place.  We are not confident there will be much rain, as the Low may make landfall south of Coos Bay.  As a result, Fraser Gap winds may pick up notably by Sunday the 26th.  Temps will be colder again, much like the current weekend.  Bland dry.

Charts keep the extended dry cycle in play on through the end the month.  The next threat for rain is being held off until Saturday Feb 1.  We may see an 'atmospheric race’ between a Low dropping down the Alaskan Panhandle and a Low moving in from the west; the first Low would usher in a chance for colder wx with snow showers, the other - plain ole' rain.  We’ll see.

Bottom line: bland weather ahead, with temperature changes being the only ‘watch point’.  Let’s hope February presents some moisture, esp for the snowpack.

New week.  Same forecast.  Fresh Mug full.  All set?

Our tag line covers it well —> periods of frost & fog in the morning hours will be the rule through the end of January.  Sure, a small chance for a tad of precip, esp in the hills; nothing notable.  Dry City.

WINDS in southern Cal are kicking back up again through mid-week; they will diminish by Thu.  Not too much easterly flow around the PNW, which is a small adjustment from our last report.  Still dry.  

Colder air will gradually seep in from the NE this week as another block of cold, Arctic air descends into the US from the interior of Canada, setting up bitterly cold air across much of the Nation east of the Rockies.  Burrrr.   Dry weekend for us, Jan 18,19 - colder than this past weekend, for sure, with a moderate east wind drawing cold air to the west side.  Overnight lows in the 20s probable west side.

The week of Jan 20 is trending DRY but with increasing east winds around the PNW, although not super cold.  Rather bland, if you will.  The wind will decrease the change for foggy bottoms.

Weekend of Jan 25, 26 looks to be a possible ’turning point’ relative to the PNW getting into a truly winter mode.  Meaning: models hint at a modified Arctic air mass beginning to impact the PNW during the final days of January 2025.  We understand — is this another false start?  No one knows for sure; we report what may be possible, then wait out the ‘great reveal’.  Anyway, there have been several wx model geeks discussing the potential for a very cold February around these here parts.  With our Mugs in hand, we just PONDER the possibilities.  Anywho, expect temps turn colder as the week of Jan 27 progresses.  Flurries in the eastern basins.

Drat, the outlook for The White has changed.  Figures.  Let’s see what happened.  Hot Mug time.

As expected, this morning presents a rapidly moving cold front yielding some rain across the PNW.  After a mild week, temperatures will be notably cooler this weekend, and it will be DRY.  Good shot of snow in the Cascades.  

Week of Jan 13-17:  DRY.  —> High pressure will begin to rebuild across the region, as will a very large High pressure dome centered over eastern ID & northern UT.  So what, you ask?  Well, the strong ‘fire winds’ in CA will subside this weekend, BUT return again as the High pressure dome re-establishes.  Monday through Wed, east winds will begin in the Columbia Gorge (and to a lesser extent, the Fraser Gap); dangerous in CA.  By the end of the week, the winds will weaken.  The end of next week should be a little milder.

Weekend of Jan 18,19 - DRY, but turning cooler again, as cold air mass drops into the lower 48 out of Canada.  The PNW will get a ’sliver’ of this cold air, so eastern basins will be colder (not Arctic cold).  Models have ‘erased' the Low coming down the BC coast offering us a snowy outcome.  Such is the choice of Nature.  Bitter cold air moves out across the heartland, setting up a winter storm in the east.  On Inauguration Day, it will be bitterly cold in the Nation’s Capitol, but sunny. 

Week of Jan 20-24: DRY all week in the PNW.  East wind possible late week out of the ‘Gaps’, although NOT a cold outbreak.

Overall, the long-range outlook is DRY for the rest of January 2025.  Today’s rain might be it for the month. 

Say what?  Well, it is a couple of weeks out, but long-range model runs are coming around to a major winter event in the PNW.  Ponder time now, planning time coming soon, should the model’s verify.  Let’s Mug-start the discussion now.

The incessant rainy period of late has ended.  Yes, we will get a shot or two of precipitation over the next several days, but durations will be limited.  That said, expect a quick-shot of showers overnight this Tue, only if you live NW WA / Vancouver area.  The next threat for rain will be more widespread and arrive overnight this Thu into early Fri Jan 9.  This system will be organized, presenting rain west side, freezing rain and snow east side; several inches of snow in the Cascades.  

Other than the shots of precip mentioned above, we are on track to remain DRY through roughly Thu night Jan 16th.  Overall temperatures will be fairly moderate until just before the Jan 16-17 storm arrives.  Then, LOOK OUT for SNOW!!  

⚠️ Seriously, model runs suggest that the cold front on Friday Jan 17 will usher in SNOW at the surface across the PNW.  

Much colder air is charting to infiltrate the region - via the typical Fraser & Columbia Gaps - during the weekend of Jan 18,19.  Concurrently, moisture will ride up from the south, setting up a notable SNOW EVENT late Sunday Jan 19 into early Inauguration Day, Mon Jan 20.  The heaviest snowfall is currently targeting western OR.  (We’ll deal with how much snow, should all of this continue to verify.)

Around Tue Jan 21, a VERY cold Arctic Blast is looking possible for the PNW — the coldest temps in quite some time.  We will need to monitor THIS possible outcome closely.  As of now, temps in the single digits are pegged for mid-week, Jan 22.  Furthermore, another push of moisture from the SW may arrive late week, Jan 22-23, for a real messy snow storm — putting more snow on top of what will already be ‘placed’.   Oh my.

Again, PONDER all of this mid-Jan winter stuff for now, but should we see continued verification of such a series of winter events, planning for travel, school closures, etc will be prudent.  Keep that Mug handy, Patron!