Dry Ending for November

Our pleasant holiday weekend will continue.  So, too, will the ‘run' of dry days.  Got your Mug ready?

Frosty mornings in many locations - if the sky clears - will be the play for a few more days.  Sunny, chilly, late fall afternoons.    Fog may pop in for areas mainly north of Portland, as Columbia Gorge winds will push fog aside for a few days here in NW OR.  NO RAIN is charting through the rest of November.  The weak system we noted last time for next Tue evening is going to remain offshore, tracking south into CA for some light precipitation there, primarily south of the Bay area.  While there is a chance for light showers over the PNW next Fri, as the month of December arrives, we are forecasting that the transition back to a rainy PNW will take a day or two longer — so, we’ll go with continued dry wx through all of next week.  A wet, chilly pattern should return Sat and/or Sunday, Dec 2,3.  

Starting next weekend, Dec 2,3, models suggest a weak system approaching OR from the west, with increasing clouds, slightly warmer temps and some precip.  A much stronger storm is charting to arrive later on Sunday the 3rd.  This could truly 'open the atmospheric door' for a series of storms moving in one right after the other for a week or more.  NOTE: it is possible that 1 or 2 of these storms will be WIND PRODUCERS - so we’ll monitor closely.  Also, they will be carry lots of moisture into the region, so expect lots of moderate-to-heavy rainfall once the pattern sets up by Monday Dec 4.  The good news for the snowpack is that colder air will be associated with the storms, yielding FEET of snow in the Cascades and Sierra Nevada range.  Yep, the lovely holiday break is over.

It should be noted that several model scenarios keep those wet systems offshore, tracking them into CA (think El Niño) instead of the PNW.  That said, for now, we’ll stick with the latest model runs which indicate a return to seasonal weather pattern for early Dec.  Rain, mountain snow, & windy systems from Dec 3 through at least the 15th.  

Repeat quip: “It’s quite obvious that what makes some people tick needs winding."