It should be a pretty nice day in the mountains with plenty of sunshine, warm temperatures, and generally light winds. We're off to a relatively warm start this morning. Most of our weather stations up and down the mountains show readings at or near freezing. Temperature inversions and some patchy fog/low clouds formed in many of the mountain valleys and passes. This could linger into the morning, but warmer air will eventually win and send our freezing levels climbing. Freezing levels should peak mid-day between 7000 and 9500 ft before dipping slightly overnight and into Saturday. A weather system approaching well to our north will spread a few bands of high clouds across the skies, but generally, you should see sunshine throughout the day.
The high-pressure ridge responsible for this warm and dry weather should flatten and shift further east overnight ahead of an approaching disturbance. While the ridge will deflect the storm north of our region, a few stray showers may clip the northern half of the Olympics and mountains close to the Canadian border late Friday night and early Sunday morning. Most locations will remain dry, and this system will bring little more than increasing clouds and light to moderate winds. Expect another night of temperature inversions, especially south of I90, prior to yet another warm and dry day Saturday.
Weather Forecast
Olympics
West North
West Central
West South
Stevens Pass
Snoqualmie Pass
East North
East Central
East South
Mt. Hood
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Friday
Mostly sunny and warm. Passing bands of high clouds. Increasing SW winds in the afternoon.
Friday
Night
Becoming cloudy and mild. Isolated showers possible after midnight. SW winds decreasing slightly.
Friday
Mostly sunny and warm. Passing bands of high clouds. Light to occasionally moderate SSW winds developing mid-morning.
Friday
Night
Becoming cloudy with isolated showers possible after midnight. Light to moderate SW winds.
Friday
Mostly sunny and warm. Passing bands of high clouds.
Friday
Night
Partly to mostly cloudy and mild. Temperature inversions possible the mountain valleys and passes.
Friday
Mostly sunny and warm. Passing bands of high clouds.
Friday
Night
Partly cloudy to mostly clear. Temperature inversions in the mountain valleys and passes. WSW winds increasing overnight.
Friday
Mostly sunny and warm. Passing bands of high clouds. Light easterly flow at Pass level.
Friday
Night
Partly cloudy with increasing high clouds. Temperature inversions possible. Light easterly flow ending in the early morning hours.
Friday
Mostly sunny and warm. Passing bands of high clouds. Light easterly flow at Pass level.
Friday
Night
Mostly clear with periods of high clouds. Temperature inversions possible. Light easterly flow becoming west overnight.
Friday
Mostly sunny and mild. Passing bands of high clouds.
Friday
Night
Partly to mostly cloudy with increasing clouds. A few stray showers possible after midnight close to the Canadian border. WSW increasing slightly.
Friday
Mostly sunny and warm. Passing bands of high clouds. WSW winds increasing slightly in the afternoon.
Friday
Night
Partly cloudy in the north. Mostly clear in the south. Temperature inversions possible. Moderate W winds developing overnight.
Friday
Mostly sunny and warm. Passing bands of high clouds.
Friday
Night
Mostly clear with some high clouds. Temperature inversions possible. W winds increasing overnight.
Friday
Mostly sunny and warm. A few high clouds possible.
Friday
Night
Mostly clear and mild. Temperature inversions possible.
The NWAC program is administered by the USDA-Forest Service and operates from the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Seattle. NWAC services are made possible by important collaboration and support from a wide variety of federal, state and private cooperators.
The 5000’ temperature forecast does not imply a trend over the 12 hr period and only represents the max and min temperatures within a 12 hr period in the zone. The 6-hr snow level forecast, the forecast discussion, and weather forecast sections may add detail regarding temperature trends.
The snow level forecast represents the general snow level over a 6 hr time period. Freezing levels are forecast when precipitation is not expected.
*Easterly or offshore flow is highlighted with an asterisk when we expect relatively cool east winds in the major Cascade Passes. Easterly flow will often lead to temperature inversions and is a key variable for forecasting precipitation type in the Cascade Passes. Strong easterly flow events can affect terrain on a more regional scale.
Ridgeline winds are the average wind speed and direction over a 6 hr time period.
The wind forecast represents an elevation range instead of a single elevation slice. The elevation range overlaps with the near and above treeline elevation bands in the avalanche forecast and differs per zone.
Wind direction indicates the direction the wind originates or comes from on the 16-point compass rose.
Water Equivalent (WE) is the liquid water equivalent of all precipitation types; rain, snow, ice pellets, etc., forecast to the hundredth of an inch at specific locations. To use WE as a proxy for snowfall amounts, start with a snow to water ratio of 10:1 (10 inches of snow = 1 inch WE). Temperatures at or near freezing will generally have a lower ratio (heavy wet snow) and very cold temperatures can have a much higher ratio (dry fluffy snow).