A weak shortwave passing from NW to SE through the area this morning has brought some low clouds to much of the region along with a few light snow flakes along the central and southern Cascades. A clearing trend will ensue today for most areas but low clouds may linger throughout the day along the east slopes of the Cascades and near the Cascade Passes.
High pressure anchored off the central British Columbia coast will maintain dry northerly flow over the area through Friday. Milder air will creep in from the west beginning today and continuing through Friday. Look for rising freezing levels for areas west of the Cascade crest. There will be temperature inversions and a mixed bag of freezing levels near and east of the Cascade crest. Offshore easterly flow will increase tonight and tomorrow, adding a local easterly breeze in some locations.
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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Wednesday
Partly cloudy in the morning becoming mostly sunny.
Wednesday
Night
Mostly clear.
Wednesday
Partly cloudy in the morning becoming mostly sunny.
Wednesday
Night
Mostly clear.
Wednesday
Partly to mostly cloudy in the morning becoming mostly sunny.
Wednesday
Night
Mostly clear.
Wednesday
Mostly cloudy in the morning becoming mostly sunny.
Wednesday
Night
Mostly clear.
Wednesday
Cloudy in the morning with a few snow flurries becoming mostly cloudy in the afternoon. Light and variable winds at Pass level.
Wednesday
Night
Mostly clear. Areas of low clouds near and east of the Pass. Light east winds at Pass level.
Wednesday
Cloudy in the morning with a few snow flurries becoming mostly cloudy in the afternoon. Light and variable winds at Pass level.
Wednesday
Night
Mostly clear. Areas of low clouds near and east of the Pass. Light east winds at Pass level.
Wednesday
Partly cloudy in the morning becoming mostly sunny.
Wednesday
Night
Mostly clear. Areas of valley fog and low clouds.
Wednesday
Partly to mostly cloudy in the morning becoming mostly sunny.
Wednesday
Night
Mostly clear. Areas of valley fog and low clouds.
Wednesday
Partly to mostly cloudy in the morning becoming mostly sunny.
Wednesday
Night
Mostly clear. Areas of valley fog and low clouds.
Wednesday
Partly to mostly cloudy in the morning becoming mostly sunny.
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).