Saturday is shaping up to be a beautiful day in the mountains! Taking a look around the regions via webcams this morning, there are a few areas of patchy fog and low clouds in the mountain valleys and passes. These should quickly clear. A high-pressure ridge will continue to build over the Pacific Northwest and bring us mostly sunny skies, generally light winds, and mild temperatures. A few high level clouds will pass over the ridge today causing periods of more filtered sunshine, especially for locations near and north of I-90.
This pattern should continue for most areas Saturday night. With mostly clear skies you could experience weak temperature inversions in the mountain valleys and passes. However, a mild evening with passing high clouds and relatively light winds should be the norm.
We'll start to see a change in the weather on Sunday. An approaching storm dropping south from Alaska will try to squash the ridge. As it does so, much warmer air gets pulled into the region. This should send freezing levels soaring particularly for Mt Hood, the Olympics, and the southern forecasting zones. As the storm draws closer, you'll see two major changes; clouds will increase and winds should turn more westerly and strengthen. While precipitation appears to hold off until after sunset for all locations except Mt Baker, you'll know a winter storm is knocking at the door.
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
Mostly sunny with passing high clouds.
Saturday
Night
Partly to mostly clear with passing high clouds.
Saturday
Low clouds in the morning. Becoming partly to mostly sunny with passing high clouds.
Saturday
Night
Partly to mostly clear with increasing clouds possible overnight.
Saturday
Low clouds in the morning. Becoming partly to mostly sunny with passing high clouds.
Saturday
Night
Partly to mostly clear. Low clouds and fog possible in the mountain valleys and passes.
Saturday
A few low clouds and fog in the mountain valleys and passes. Quickly becoming mostly sunny with passing high clouds.
Saturday
Night
Mostly clear with a few passing high clouds.
Saturday
Patchy low clouds and fog in the morning. Quickly becoming mostly sunny with passing high clouds. Light westerly flow.
Saturday
Night
Mostly clear with passing high and mid level clouds. Periods of easterly flow.
Saturday
A few low clouds and patchy fog in the morning. Quickly becoming mostly sunny with passing high clouds.
Saturday
Night
Mostly clear with passing high clouds. Periods of easterly flow at Pass level.
Saturday
Mostly sunny with passing high clouds.
Saturday
Night
Mostly clear with increasing clouds near the Canadian border.
Saturday
Mostly sunny with passing high clouds.
Saturday
Night
Mostly clear with a passing high clouds.
Saturday
Mostly sunny with passing high clouds.
Saturday
Night
Mostly clear with passing high clouds.
Saturday
A few low clouds in the morning. Quickly becoming mostly sunny with passing bands of high clouds.
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).