While you may see a few patches of blue sky and some sunshine to start your day, cloudy skies, mild temperatures, and light to moderate winds will be the norm. A broad open trough will approach the coast this morning. This feature will drive our weather for the next several days as it rotates a series of weak short-wave disturbances into our region. Precipitation from the first of these storms is already arriving just offshore. Right as it approaches the coast, it should stall. This will limit the amount of rain and snow we see in the mountains. Look for a few showers this morning in the Olympics and North Cascades, but it will take to until the afternoon for most of the precipitation to reach the remainder of the area. In general, showers will impact the west slopes of the Cascades from about Hwy 12 northward. With snow levels lingering around 4000-4500ft the Passes should see rain and/or wet snow.
The same showery pattern and mild temperatures linger overnight and into Sunday morning. Eventually, our second (and slightly stronger) storm catches the stalled front and shoves it eastward. An associated cold front will pass over the Pacific Northwest in the afternoon and evening, This will bring stronger S-SW winds and more constant precipitation to the mountains. There's still a bit of uncertainty about exactly when the peak of this storm will occur. Right now, it seems to be in the late afternoon or early evening hours. After the front passes, colder air will push into the region and bring snow levels back below all Pass elevations. This same cold, wet, and active pattern should linger through much of the week.
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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Saturday
Cloudy with showers mainly on the west slopes of the Olympics. Light to moderate SSW winds.
Saturday
Night
Cloudy with showers. Moderate SW winds.
Saturday
Cloudy with a few showers in the morning, becoming more frequent in the afternoon. Moderate but gusty S winds.
Saturday
Night
Cloudy with scattered showers heaviest near Mt Baker. Moderate to strong S winds.
Saturday
Cloudy with showers arriving around lunchtime. Light to moderate S winds.
Saturday
Night
Cloudy with scattered showers. Light to moderate S winds.
Saturday
Clouds thickening and lowering with a few showers late in the afternoon, mainly in the northern half of the zone. Light to moderate S winds turning SW. Southerly winds stronger near Crystal Mt.
Saturday
Night
Isolated showers. Moderate SW winds.
Saturday
Clouds thickening and lowering with a few isolated showers later in the day. Light E flow at Pass level.
Saturday
Night
Cloudy with isolated showers. Light E flow at Pass level.
Saturday
Clouds thickening and lowering with a few showers primarily in the afternoon. Light E flow at Pass level. Light to moderate SSE ridgeline winds decreasing.
Saturday
Night
Cloudy with isolated showers. Light E flow at Pass level. Ridgeline winds becoming SSW light to moderate.
Saturday
Increasing clouds will begin to thicken and lower. A few isolated showers possible later in the day.
Saturday
Night
Cloudy with isolated showers, particularly near the crest. Light to moderate S winds decreasing.
Saturday
Increasing clouds will thicken and lower. A few isolated showers possible in the afternoon. Light to moderate SSW winds.
Saturday
Night
Cloudy with a few isolated showers. Light to moderate SSW winds turning SW and increasing.
Saturday
Becoming cloudy, with ceilings thickening and lowering. A few very isolated showers possible in the northern half of the zone. Light to moderate SSW winds.
Saturday
Night
Cloudy with a few isolated showers in the northern half of the zone. Moderate SW winds.
Saturday
Mostly sunny in the morning, becoming cloudy, with cloud decks thickening and lowering. Light to moderate SW winds increasing in the afternoon.
Saturday
Night
Cloudy. SW winds increasing and becoming strong and gusty.
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).