If you're excited to play with new toys in some fresh snow, then you're in luck. A short wave weather system will push across the area today. Overall, look for the weather to become increasingly stormy with gusty winds and periods of heavy snow developing around midday.
The first bands of precipitation are already reaching the Olympics this morning. Showers will arrive along the west slopes of the Cascades before transitioning to steady snowfall closer to lunchtime. This isn't a particularly powerful storm. Precipitation will struggle to make it to far east of the Cascade crest. Generally, cooling temperatures throughout the day and overnight should maintain snow at all but the lowest trailhead elevations. The other story will be the winds. Strong and gusty winds near Mt Baker in the morning will shift further S and E as the bulk of the precipitation arrives. Expect winds to increase for locations like Mission Ridge, Mt Hood, and the West South zone.
The storm really crescendos in the evening hours with periods of heavy snow and strong and gusty winds. Precipitation turns more showery overnight with a Puget Sound Convergence Zone forming. This narrow band of more intense snowfall appears to set up between Hwy 2 and I-90, spilling over into the Salmon la Sac area. However, small shifts in this feature could bring significantly more or less snow based on its position.
By Saturday morning, a high pressure ridge starts to build off the coast. This will help the region to dry out and clear up. Showers should taper from North to South throughout the day, lingering longest near Mt Hood. Behind the precipitation, sun breaks should follow. You're most likely to see proper sunshine in areas near the Canadian border and east of the crest. This will mark the beginning of a reprieve from the wet and wild December weather we've experienced.
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
Friday
Snow, heaviest in the western Olympics. Precipitation becoming showery in the afternoon. Light to moderate winds.
Friday
Night
Showers in the evening, then clearing. Low clouds and valley fog. Light to moderate winds decreasing.
Friday
Showers in the morning, becoming all snow mid day. Moderate to occasionally heavy. Moderate to strong and gusty SSW winds turning more W and decreasing.
Friday
Night
Snow. Heaviest in the evening, then becoming more showery. Light to moderate WNW winds decreasing.
Friday
Cloudy with a few showers in the morning, becoming snow, could be heavy at times. Moderate and gusty winds.
Friday
Night
Snow in the evening, becoming showery overnight. A Puget Sound Convergence Zone between Hwy 2 and I-90. Moderate W winds turning more NW and decreasing.
Friday
Cloudy with a few showers possible in the morning. Snow developing mid day, could be heavy at times, especially on the volcanoes. Winds turning more WSW and becoming moderate and gusty.
Friday
Night
Snow in the evening could be heavy at times, becoming more showery overnight. Moderate to strong and gusty W winds decreasing slightly.
Friday
Cloudy with a few showers in the morning. Snow developing mid day. WSW winds becoming light to moderate.
Friday
Night
Snow in the evening, could be heavy at times. Becoming showery with a Puget Sound Convergence Zone focused near Hwy 2. W winds becoming moderate and gusty.
Friday
Cloudy with a few showers in the morning. Snow developing mid day. Possibility for rain or wet snow at Pass level for a moment in the afternoon. WSW winds becoming moderate and gusty.
Friday
Night
Rain and snow in the evening, becoming showery. A Puget Sound Convergence Zone near or just north of I-90. Moderate to strong and gusty W winds decreasing slightly.
Friday
Cloudy with showers increasing throughout the day. Heaviest near the Cascade Crest. Winds turning more WSW and becoming moderate and gusty.
Friday
Night
Cloudy with showers mostly in the evening, then becoming more isolated overnight. Light to moderate NW winds.
Friday
Cloudy near the crest and partly cloudy further east. Showers developing during the day. Heaviest near the crest. Windy, with WSW winds becoming strong and gusty.
Friday
Night
Cloudy with snow showers mainly in the evening. A Puget Sound Convergence Zone could bring heavier precipitation to the Salmon la Sac area. Moderate to strong and gusty winds increasing.
Friday
Becoming cloudy with showers developing mainly near the crest. WSW winds becoming moderate to strong and gusty.
Friday
Night
Cloudy with showers mainly in the evening, then becoming isolated. Strong and gusty W winds decreasing slightly.
Friday
Cloudy with a few snow showers in the morning, becomg snow around mid day. Could be heavy at times. Wind increasing and becoming strong and gusty .
Friday
Night
Snow, could be heavy at times, becoming more showering in the early morning hours. Very strong and gusty winds with extreme alpine winds.
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).