Friday July 23

 

"Beautiful portraits of the atmosphere are often painted on the canvas of the SW desert sky” -Rufus.  One such lovely ‘painting’ was photographed by Karen Peterson in Carson New Mexico last Thursday (image below).  For the PNW, lots of blue paint sky weather is in store, although temperatures will begin to heat up later next week.  Refill your Friday Mug.

 

The position of the Summer Pacific High pressure ridge continues to produce favorable weather for our region.  Onshore flow will ebb & flow for the next 2-3 weeks, resulting in mild temps along with a few hot afternoons thrown in for summer’s sake.  The only negative is the lack of precipitation (sorry, Firefighters).  Temperatures this weekend will bump up into the upper 80s to lower 90s across much of western OR (a bit cooler for Puget Sound Patrons); summer hot east of the mountains.  Next week will start out with a few cooler afternoons following morning clouds in some locations.  Then, we may enter an extended period of rather warm temperatures.

 

That’s right, the overall pattern is modeled to shift just enough to open that door for more summer heat.  The coming heat-up will NOT be anywhere like the last heat wave.  Still, the potential is there for a stretch of the warmest weather since that historic event.  Right now, by the end of next week, expect temps to ramp up into the lower 90s as the weekend of July 31-Aug 1 unfolds.  The heat will remain in play through the early days of August.  We are not forecasting 7 straight days of 90+ weather; just a run of days with temperatures running on the ‘warm side’ (85-99F), as compared to most of this past week (July 19-22).  Thu - Sat, Aug 5-7 are charting to be the coolest days between now and Aug 10.  We’ll see.

 

 

 

 

 

What can we say?  The steady weather pattern over the PNW continues 'on and on' this month.  Details don’t vary much, so we’ll simply post the following:

 

DRY, with afternoon NW breezes, with a few days warming into the upper 80s to lower 90s, otherwise pleasant temps.  That’s about it through the end of July 2021.  Early August is trending much the same.

 

Work on. Harvest on. Vacation on. Mug on, Patron!

 

 

 

Quick forecast, as there are no major changes foreseen in the summer pattern.  Mug time.

 

Dry for the next two weeks.  No Rain.  Fire risk will remain High.  

 

Warm-to-hot temperatures will likely occur during the following periods: this weekend, the weekend of July 24,25, and the last day or so of July into the first couple days of August.  In between, temps will be pleasant with an onshore flow & possible morning marine clouds.  Showers may develop east side & along the east slopes of the Cascades in the July 25,26 period.  Coolest period ahead looks to be the last week of July. 

 

There will likely be adjustments as to timing of the warmest days ahead, but overall, normal July weather can be expected.  Enjoy with caution, relative to the high fire risk.

 

 

 

Late posting today (as may be the case this summer, given our Giant Pumpkin Project (below).  Good, steady summer weather remains the call, so not much to report as to long-range outlook.

 

No rain nor out-of-the-norm weather foreseen through the balance of July.  Temps should cool down a bit as this week progresses.  Onshore flow will increase, tapping into our marine air-conditioning.  Thank goodness.  The coming weekend (July 17,18) promises to be on the cooler side of summer, making for excellent outdoor activities, excluding swimming.  It will be a bit BREEZY in the afternoons.

 

Next week should remain cool early on, then present another warm period as the weekend of July 24,25 approaches.  Temps likely to pop back into the mid-upper 80s west side; warmer to the east.  By Sunday the 25th, another cool push of marine air will drop temps again, to provide a pleasant period for the rest of July.  Coastal drizzle at times during the cooler days mentioned.

 

Third Cup:  Here at the Mennonite Village retirement community in Albany, 3 of us are attempting to grow a Giant Pumpkin - first time for the Village; first time for us.  The Project is going very well (see image).  Our pumpkin is now growing at a fast pace and should be adding 25-40 pounds PER DAY in August.  We spend 2+ hours every morning working The Patch and tending to the Big One.  Our weigh-off will be in October.  We are doing this just for fun & to provide a focal point of interest for fellow Village residents.   

 

 

 

We remain in a very balanced weather pattern.  Sure, we’ll catch a few days of temps in the upper 80s to lower 90s; however, most afternoons should top out in the upper 70s to lower 80s between now and July 28.  

 

The warmest stretch out of the next 14 days will likely be this weekend.  Onshore flow will gradually increase heading into next week, so temps will be tapped down 5-8 degrees.  Morning marine clouds are possible at times next week.  Plenty of sunshine.

 

Another notch down in temperatures is likely after next weekend (July 17,18), as a weak trough will approach from the NW.  Coastal drizzle and delays in the sun’s 'burning off’ the marine cloud deck in western valleys will hold down temps to a bit below average July 19-24.  Warmer weather may arrive again after the 25th.  

 

NO RAIN is foreseen on the long-range charts.  Drat.  

 

Solemn Moment.  While the negative impact on agriculture from the recent historic PNW heat wave is still unfolding, regionally, the latest death toll figures are frankly staggering.  For WA, OR & BC the cumulative number of deaths has reached 680, 116 of those in OR alone (July 8, 2021 figures).  Seriously, what weather event or natural disaster in the PNW has caused that many deaths in the past?  Broken temperature records are one thing, but the huge loss of life is breathtaking.  How can we be better prepared?