Issued: 2:27 PM PDT Tuesday, March 29, 2022
by Dennis D'Amico

Jump to: Weather Forecast I Precipitation I Snow Level I 5000' Temps I Ridgeline Winds I Extended Weather

Weather Synopsis

Currently, there's a mix of low clouds near and west of the Cascade crest and high clouds filtering in ahead of the next system. Afternoon temperatures are generally mild with widespread 40s showing up at mid-elevation stations and 50s at lower elevation sites. 

A frontal system will approach overnight, with a little precipitation working its way inland over the Olympic Peninsula and northwest Cascades before daybreak. These same areas will see moderate to locally strong south winds ahead of the front. Snow levels will begin to free-fall after midnight. The front should pass through the Cascades mid-Wednesday morning with little fanfare.

It will be the post-frontal showers in westerly flow along with the cooler snow levels that bring light to locally moderate snowfall through Wednesday late morning through Thursday morning.  A Puget Sound Convergence Zone will likely form quickly before mid-day Wednesday, first taking aim into the central Cascades around Hwy 2 and then sliding closer to I-90 during the afternoon and overnight hours. As always with convergence zones, slight variations in the setup and duration will produce widely different amounts. Forecast models have been trending towards a more moderate event for the Snoqualmie Pass area, where over 6-9" may accumulate through Thursday morning. Snow may have trouble sticking at Pass level (3000') during the daylight hours as the showers battle late March afternoon warming. Several inches of snow are likely elsewhere along the west slopes of the Cascades above 3500' with much lower amounts or no snow the further one travels east of the Cascade crest.  Strong westerly ridgeline winds will persist through Thursday morning as well.  

A ridge of high pressure will begin nosing over the area from the west on Thursday. Showers will become light and scattered, but will not completely shut off along the west side of the Cascades. It will be a cool early spring day across the region with ample cloud cover near and west of the Cascade crest. 

Weather Forecast

Olympics
West North
West Central
West South
Stevens Pass
Snoqualmie Pass
East North
East Central
East South
Mt. Hood
Use dropdown to select your zone
Tuesday Night Cloudy with light rain or snow developing late. Ridgeline winds increasing and becoming moderate after midnight.
Wednesday Partly to mostly cloudy with light rain and snow showers. Moderate ridgeline winds.
Tuesday Night Cloudy with light rain or snow developing late. Ridgeline winds increasing and becoming moderate to strong after midnight.
Wednesday Light to occasionally moderate rain and snow in the morning. Mostly cloudy with light to occasionally moderate snow showers in the afternoon. Moderate to strong ridgeline winds easing in the afternoon.
Tuesday Night Cloudy with a chance of light rain or snow late. Ridgeline winds increasing and becoming moderate after midnight.
Wednesday Light to occasionally moderate rain and snow in the morning. Mostly cloudy with light to occasionally moderate snow showers in the afternoon. Moderate ridgeline winds.
Tuesday Night Cloudy.
Wednesday Light to occasionally moderate rain and snow in the morning. Mostly cloudy with light to occasionally moderate snow showers in the afternoon. Moderate ridgeline winds.
Tuesday Night Cloudy with a chance of light rain or snow late. Light west winds at Pass level.
Wednesday Light to occasionally moderate rain and snow in the morning. Mostly cloudy with light to occasionally moderate snow showers in the afternoon. Moderate ridgeline and Pass level westerly winds.
Tuesday Night Cloudy with a chance of light rain or snow late. Light west winds at Pass level.
Wednesday Light to occasionally moderate rain and snow in the morning. Mostly cloudy with light to moderate snow showers in the afternoon. Moderate to strong ridgeline and Pass level westerly winds.
Tuesday Night Cloudy.
Wednesday Cloudy with light rain and snow developing near the Cascade crest mid-morning. Partly to mostly cloudy with light snow showers near the Cascade crest in the afternoon. Moderate ridgeline winds.
Tuesday Night Cloudy. Ridgeline winds increasing and becoming moderate after midnight.
Wednesday Cloudy with light rain and snow developing near the Cascade crest mid-morning. Partly to mostly cloudy with light to locally moderate snow showers near the Cascade crest in the afternoon. Strong ridgeline winds.
Tuesday Night Cloudy. Ridgeline winds increasing and becoming moderate after midnight.
Wednesday Cloudy with light rain and snow developing near the Cascade crest mid-morning. Partly to mostly cloudy with light snow showers near the Cascade crest in the afternoon. Moderate to strong ridgeline winds.
Tuesday Night Cloudy. Ridgeline winds increasing and becoming strong after midnight.
Wednesday Cloudy with light rain and snow developing mid-morning. Partly to mostly cloudy with light snow showers in the afternoon. Strong ridgeline winds.

Issued: 2:27 PM PDT Tuesday, March 29, 2022

Precipitation (in)

Tuesday Night Wednesday Wednesday Night Thursday
5 pm - 5 am 5 am - 5 pm 5 pm - 5 am 5 am - 5 pm
Hurricane Ridge LT 0.10 LT 0.10 LT 0.10 LT 0.10
Mt Baker Ski Area LT 0.10 0.25 0.25 - 0.50 LT 0.10
Mt. Loop - Barlow Pass LT 0.10 0.25 0.25 LT 0.10
Stevens Pass LT 0.10 0.25 0.25 LT 0.10
Snoqualmie Pass LT 0.10 0.25 - 0.50 0.25 - 0.50 LT 0.10
Crystal Mt 0 LT 0.10 LT 0.25 LT 0.10
Paradise 0 LT 0.25 0.25 LT 0.10
White Pass 0 LT 0.25 LT 0.25 LT 0.10
Washington Pass 0 LT 0.10 LT 0.10 0
Mission Ridge 0 0 LT 0.10 0
Salmon la Sac - Gallagher Head 0 LT 0.10 0.25 0
Tieton River - Darland Mt. 0 0 LT 0.10 0
Mt Hood Meadows 0 LT 0.10 LT 0.10 0
Timberline 0 LT 0.25 LT 0.25 0
Hurricane Ridge Precipitation (in)
Tuesday Night LT 0.10
Wednesday LT 0.10
Wednesday Night LT 0.10
Thursday LT 0.10
Mt Baker Ski Area Precipitation (in)
Tuesday Night LT 0.10
Wednesday 0.25
Wednesday Night 0.25 - 0.50
Thursday LT 0.10
Mt. Loop - Barlow Pass Precipitation (in)
Tuesday Night LT 0.10
Wednesday 0.25
Wednesday Night 0.25
Thursday LT 0.10
Stevens Pass Precipitation (in)
Tuesday Night LT 0.10
Wednesday 0.25
Wednesday Night 0.25
Thursday LT 0.10
Snoqualmie Pass Precipitation (in)
Tuesday Night LT 0.10
Wednesday 0.25 - 0.50
Wednesday Night 0.25 - 0.50
Thursday LT 0.10
Crystal Mt Precipitation (in)
Tuesday Night 0
Wednesday LT 0.10
Wednesday Night LT 0.25
Thursday LT 0.10
Paradise Precipitation (in)
Tuesday Night 0
Wednesday LT 0.25
Wednesday Night 0.25
Thursday LT 0.10
White Pass Precipitation (in)
Tuesday Night 0
Wednesday LT 0.25
Wednesday Night LT 0.25
Thursday LT 0.10
Washington Pass Precipitation (in)
Tuesday Night 0
Wednesday LT 0.10
Wednesday Night LT 0.10
Thursday 0
Mission Ridge Precipitation (in)
Tuesday Night 0
Wednesday 0
Wednesday Night LT 0.10
Thursday 0
Salmon la Sac - Gallagher Head Precipitation (in)
Tuesday Night 0
Wednesday LT 0.10
Wednesday Night 0.25
Thursday 0
Tieton River - Darland Mt. Precipitation (in)
Tuesday Night 0
Wednesday 0
Wednesday Night LT 0.10
Thursday 0
Mt Hood Meadows Precipitation (in)
Tuesday Night 0
Wednesday LT 0.10
Wednesday Night LT 0.10
Thursday 0
Timberline Precipitation (in)
Tuesday Night 0
Wednesday LT 0.25
Wednesday Night LT 0.25
Thursday 0

Issued: 2:27 PM PDT Tuesday, March 29, 2022

Snow Level (ft)

Tuesday Evening Tuesday Night Wednesday Morning Wednesday Afternoon Wednesday Evening Wednesday Night Thursday Morning Thursday Afternoon
Olympics 6500' 4500' 3000' 3500' 2500' 1500' 2500' 4000'
West North 6000' 4500' 3000' 3500' 2500' 1500' 2500' 4000'
West Central 6500' 4500' 3000' 3500' 2500' 1500' 2500' 4000'
West South 6500' 4500' 3000' 4000' 2500' 1500' 2500' 4000'
Stevens Pass 6500' 4500' 3000' 3500' 2500' 1500' 2500' 4000'
Snoqualmie Pass 6500' 4500' 3000' 3500' 2500' 1500' 2500' 4000'
East North 7000' 5500' 3500' 5000' 2500' 1500' 3000' 5000'
East Central 7000' 5500' 3500' 4500' 2500' 1500' 3000' 5000'
East South 7500' 5500' 3500' 5000' 2500' 1500' 3000' 5000'
Mt. Hood 8500' 4500' 3500' 4000' 2500' 2000' 2500' 4000'
Olympics Elevation
Tuesday Evening 6500'
Tuesday Night 4500'
Wednesday Morning 3000'
Wednesday Afternoon 3500'
Wednesday Evening 2500'
Wednesday Night 1500'
Thursday Morning 2500'
Thursday Afternoon 4000'
West North Elevation
Tuesday Evening 6000'
Tuesday Night 4500'
Wednesday Morning 3000'
Wednesday Afternoon 3500'
Wednesday Evening 2500'
Wednesday Night 1500'
Thursday Morning 2500'
Thursday Afternoon 4000'
West Central Elevation
Tuesday Evening 6500'
Tuesday Night 4500'
Wednesday Morning 3000'
Wednesday Afternoon 3500'
Wednesday Evening 2500'
Wednesday Night 1500'
Thursday Morning 2500'
Thursday Afternoon 4000'
West South Elevation
Tuesday Evening 6500'
Tuesday Night 4500'
Wednesday Morning 3000'
Wednesday Afternoon 4000'
Wednesday Evening 2500'
Wednesday Night 1500'
Thursday Morning 2500'
Thursday Afternoon 4000'
Stevens Pass Elevation
Tuesday Evening 6500'
Tuesday Night 4500'
Wednesday Morning 3000'
Wednesday Afternoon 3500'
Wednesday Evening 2500'
Wednesday Night 1500'
Thursday Morning 2500'
Thursday Afternoon 4000'
Snoqualmie Pass Elevation
Tuesday Evening 6500'
Tuesday Night 4500'
Wednesday Morning 3000'
Wednesday Afternoon 3500'
Wednesday Evening 2500'
Wednesday Night 1500'
Thursday Morning 2500'
Thursday Afternoon 4000'
East North Elevation
Tuesday Evening 7000'
Tuesday Night 5500'
Wednesday Morning 3500'
Wednesday Afternoon 5000'
Wednesday Evening 2500'
Wednesday Night 1500'
Thursday Morning 3000'
Thursday Afternoon 5000'
East Central Elevation
Tuesday Evening 7000'
Tuesday Night 5500'
Wednesday Morning 3500'
Wednesday Afternoon 4500'
Wednesday Evening 2500'
Wednesday Night 1500'
Thursday Morning 3000'
Thursday Afternoon 5000'
East South Elevation
Tuesday Evening 7500'
Tuesday Night 5500'
Wednesday Morning 3500'
Wednesday Afternoon 5000'
Wednesday Evening 2500'
Wednesday Night 1500'
Thursday Morning 3000'
Thursday Afternoon 5000'
Mt. Hood Elevation
Tuesday Evening 8500'
Tuesday Night 4500'
Wednesday Morning 3500'
Wednesday Afternoon 4000'
Wednesday Evening 2500'
Wednesday Night 2000'
Thursday Morning 2500'
Thursday Afternoon 4000'

Issued: 2:27 PM PDT Tuesday, March 29, 2022

5000' Temperatures (°F)

Tuesday Night Wednesday
Max / Min Max / Min
Olympics 36 / 27 31 / 25
West North 37 / 27 31 / 25
West Central 37 / 27 30 / 25
West South 40 / 27 32 / 25
Stevens Pass 39 / 27 30 / 25
Snoqualmie Pass 37 / 27 30 / 25
East North 42 / 28 33 / 25
East Central 41 / 29 33 / 26
East South 42 / 29 33 / 26
Mt. Hood 41 / 28 33 / 26
Olympics 5000' Temperature Forecast
(Max / Min)
Tuesday Night 36 / 27
Wednesday 31 / 25
West North 5000' Temperature Forecast
(Max / Min)
Tuesday Night 37 / 27
Wednesday 31 / 25
West Central 5000' Temperature Forecast
(Max / Min)
Tuesday Night 37 / 27
Wednesday 30 / 25
West South 5000' Temperature Forecast
(Max / Min)
Tuesday Night 40 / 27
Wednesday 32 / 25
Stevens Pass 5000' Temperature Forecast
(Max / Min)
Tuesday Night 39 / 27
Wednesday 30 / 25
Snoqualmie Pass 5000' Temperature Forecast
(Max / Min)
Tuesday Night 37 / 27
Wednesday 30 / 25
East North 5000' Temperature Forecast
(Max / Min)
Tuesday Night 42 / 28
Wednesday 33 / 25
East Central 5000' Temperature Forecast
(Max / Min)
Tuesday Night 41 / 29
Wednesday 33 / 26
East South 5000' Temperature Forecast
(Max / Min)
Tuesday Night 42 / 29
Wednesday 33 / 26
Mt. Hood 5000' Temperature Forecast
(Max / Min)
Tuesday Night 41 / 28
Wednesday 33 / 26

Issued: 2:27 PM PDT Tuesday, March 29, 2022

Ridgeline Winds (mph)

Tuesday Evening Tuesday Night Wednesday Morning Wednesday Afternoon
Olympics S 10-20 SW 15-25 W 15-25 WSW 10-20
West North S 10-20 S 20-30 SW 15-25 W 10-20
West Central SW 10-20 SW 15-25 SW 15-25 W 15-25
West South SW 5-15 SW 10-20 W 15-25 W 15-25
Stevens Pass WSW 5-15 W 5-15 W 15-25 W 15-25
Snoqualmie Pass WSW 5-15 W 10-20 W 20-30 W 20-30
East North WSW 5-15 W 5-15 W 15-25 W 20-30
East Central W 5-15 W 15-25 W 20-30 W 25-35
East South W 5-15 W 15-25 W 15-25 W 20-30
Mt. Hood W 15-25 W 20-30 W 20-30 W 20-30
Olympics Ridgeline Winds (mph)
Tuesday Evening S 10-20
Tuesday Night SW 15-25
Wednesday Morning W 15-25
Wednesday Afternoon WSW 10-20
West North Ridgeline Winds (mph)
Tuesday Evening S 10-20
Tuesday Night S 20-30
Wednesday Morning SW 15-25
Wednesday Afternoon W 10-20
West Central Ridgeline Winds (mph)
Tuesday Evening SW 10-20
Tuesday Night SW 15-25
Wednesday Morning SW 15-25
Wednesday Afternoon W 15-25
West South Ridgeline Winds (mph)
Tuesday Evening SW 5-15
Tuesday Night SW 10-20
Wednesday Morning W 15-25
Wednesday Afternoon W 15-25
Stevens Pass Ridgeline Winds (mph)
Tuesday Evening WSW 5-15
Tuesday Night W 5-15
Wednesday Morning W 15-25
Wednesday Afternoon W 15-25
Snoqualmie Pass Ridgeline Winds (mph)
Tuesday Evening WSW 5-15
Tuesday Night W 10-20
Wednesday Morning W 20-30
Wednesday Afternoon W 20-30
East North Ridgeline Winds (mph)
Tuesday Evening WSW 5-15
Tuesday Night W 5-15
Wednesday Morning W 15-25
Wednesday Afternoon W 20-30
East Central Ridgeline Winds (mph)
Tuesday Evening W 5-15
Tuesday Night W 15-25
Wednesday Morning W 20-30
Wednesday Afternoon W 25-35
East South Ridgeline Winds (mph)
Tuesday Evening W 5-15
Tuesday Night W 15-25
Wednesday Morning W 15-25
Wednesday Afternoon W 20-30
Mt. Hood Ridgeline Winds (mph)
Tuesday Evening W 15-25
Tuesday Night W 20-30
Wednesday Morning W 20-30
Wednesday Afternoon W 20-30

Issued: 2:27 PM PDT Tuesday, March 29, 2022

Extended Weather Synopsis

We'll be in a progressive pattern with weather systems every day or so. The ridge will quickly flatten and shift east on Friday, with light precipitation from the next frontal system brushing the Olympics and north/central Cascades in the afternoon.  Friday night looks similar to our Wednesday system with a quick moving front followed by a period of post-frontal westerlies and possibly a convergence zone. There's low confidence that showers will ease and conditions will dry on Saturday afternoon as weather models have been struggling with the details over the weekend. We may see cooler wetter systems on tap for early next week. 

Extended Snow Level (ft)

Thursday Night Friday Friday Night Saturday
West North 2000' 3500' 2000' 4000'
Snoqualmie Pass 2000' 3500' 2000' 4000'
Mt. Hood 3500' 4500' 3000' 6500'
West North Elevation
Thursday Night 2000'
Friday 3500'
Friday Night 2000'
Saturday 4000'
Snoqualmie Pass Elevation
Thursday Night 2000'
Friday 3500'
Friday Night 2000'
Saturday 4000'
Mt. Hood Elevation
Thursday Night 3500'
Friday 4500'
Friday Night 3000'
Saturday 6500'

Jump to: Weather Forecast I Precipitation I Snow Level I 5000' Temps I Ridgeline Winds I Extended Weather

Previous forecast from Mar 29, 2022

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).

The label LT, is shorthand for ‘less than’.