Dry Period Coming

 

We usher in the New Year with plenty of rain & feet of mountain snow.  Hot java ready.  Here’s goes —

 

Heavy rain & showers will prevail on/off today.  The current front is draped across the PNW, with cold air support behind it.  There will be a couple additional fronts swinging by as the week progresses, and, as mentioned in our last discussion, the freezer-door may be open again as Fraser Gap outflow could kick back up once or twice this week for local imapct.  SNOW or freezing rain is possible for Patrons in the far NW corner of WA and southern BC, as well as for Patrons in the eastern portions of the Columbia River Gorge.   Overall though, most of The White this week will remain in the mountains, adding to an already excellent snowpack for the summer of 2022.  There are some flooding issues, given the heavy rain and raising freezing level, which combined, rapidly melted low-elevation snow.  Heed Nat’l Wx Service statements.

 

By this coming weekend, the general wx pattern will shift into a drier mode.  High pressure will center east of the Cascades and Low pressure systems will remain well offshore for several days, yielding dry days from Saturday Jan 8 through Wed Jan 19.  With High pressure to the east, expect E-NE breezes to dominate those 7-10 days.  Note: some solutions hint at more OR rain by the 11th; there could also be a system clipping the northern 1/2 of western WA sometime Fri the 14th.  Both scenarios are iffy right now.    The airmass east of the Cascades is not modeled to be ‘Arctic cold’, just seasonally colder than the west side.  Mornings frosts are possible in wind-sheltered areas - typical for January.  Fog at times and afternoon sunshine should be the main feature for about a week. Enjoy.

 

Ponder Point:  After the 19th?  Well, early yet, but we are watching another potential Yukon High Dome developing.  It most likely will drop south, east of the Rockies, to bring a winter slap to the U.S. heartland.  However, the Pacific High may shift again to the NW, as it did in December, opening the door for the Yukon High to clip the PNW for another winter event.