The Weather Cafe ® by Rufus

Written by Rufus La Lone since 1994.

Back to the Damp Side

Posted by Rufus La Lone on

Monday March 18
What a delightful weekend across the entire PNW.  We do have a day or two left before the current round of awesome wx fades into the past.  Let’s take a look.  Mug ready?
Today and Tue Mar 19 will be dry & mild, with temps topping out in the upper 60s to lower 70s west side.  Willamette Valley likely to get the 4th day in a row at or above 70 today, with a good chance for temps to be a couple degrees warmer than Sunday.  We do see a cool down beginning later on Wed, the first day of Spring.  Cool ’trough’ moving down the BC coast will slowly push onshore over the Puget Sound first, then NW OR by early Thu morning, Mar 21.  Mostly a cloud event, but a shower or two should not be ruled out.  Definitely cooler.  Friday is currently looking a tad warmer than Thu, as a southwest flow begins to enter the atmospheric theater.  This pattern will usher in a decent shot of RAIN late Fri through Sat, Mar 22,23.  Showers across the region on Sun Mar 24, although NW WA & Vancouver Is may escape much the precip.  
As the week of Mar 25-29 gets going, a cool, cloudy day or two early may lead to a few more dry days.  Models are mixed on this, but the trend is for the bulk of a large Low pressure trough to shift south offshore, with the main impact going to California.  That said, there will be some rain over OR, and maybe SW WA overnight Tue into Wed Mar 27, as said storm develops and tracks towards CA.  Drying west side, with wrap-around moisture from the CA storm keeping the eastern basins and ID damp as next week winds down.  The threat for a FROST on Good Friday or Sat morning is looking less likely, but it will be chilly overnight.
EASTER.  The last weekend of March is trending cool, with lots of clouds on Sat, turning WET later EASTER Sunday Mar 3.  Currently, there’s a reasonable chance for dry sunrise services in OR, with increasing chance for showers the farther north one travels north of OR early Easter morning.  Timing may change, but we do see rain across WA and NW OR at some point Easter Day.  BC, too.
April is charting to start on the chilly side, with plenty of rain and mountain snow.  Coats may be needed again, as there is model suggestion of a colder flow from the NW impacting the region early in April.  It has happened before.  We’ll keep you posted, of course.
“Biscuits and sermons are improved by shortening."
-Rufus
Copyright © 1994-2024 - All Rights Reserved - The Weather Café ®
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Sing'n in the . . .

Posted by Rufus La Lone on

The Ides of March 2024
The next 4 days will have you “Sing’n in the sunshine”.  Broadly speaking, and depending on location, should we garner 3 or more days of 70+ degree temps, it will be the longest stretch of such temps in March since 2005 - nineteen years ago.  Lucky! 
Sunshine and warm afternoons on tab now through Monday.  It still looks mild & dry Tue, however, models suggest a cold trough may move in from the NW overnight Tue into Wed Mar 20 - the Spring Equinox.  The coolness may also produce a shower or two, esp over the Puget Sound region.  For now, we’ll go with a cooling off period Wed & Thu next week before a moderately damp period returns to both end the week and the month.
Showers return across the PNW during the Mar 23,24 weekend.  New foliage will get wet; soil temps will drop.  Although not quite as cold, the chilly wx of early March is charting to return during the last week of the month.  It looks wet Mon through Thu, Mar 25-28.  FROST possible Fri and / or Sat morning, Mar 29,30 if the sky clears in your area.  
California will again receive rainfall during the Mar 23,24 weekend and on through the following week.  We do not see flooding issues, just more rain & mountain snow.
☘️ Enjoy St Patrick’s Day weekend while sing’n in the sunshine.
“Smiles never go up in price nor down in value.”  
-Rufus
Copyright © 1994-2024 - All Rights Reserved - The Weather Café ®
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Almost Here

Posted by Rufus La Lone on

Monday March 11
That’s right, an extended mild-to-warm dry weather pattern is almost here.  We are ready.  You?
Chilly, wet & windy pattern will move in today and hold on through Tue.  Then — dry, sunny days will begin by Wednesday, with warming on into the coming weekend.  Our much anticipated dry cycle will bless the PNW with some of the warmest temperatures since last fall.  The weekend could present temps in the upper 60s to low 70s all the way up & down the PNW.  A blessed St Patrick’s Day, for sure.
Next week will continue to be dry, with a cool down possible by mid-week, lasting through Fri Mar 22.  There will be a cold Low moving south off the coast of OR & WA, which will push a few clouds inland and cool temps down.  Right now, we do not see drenching rain issues during the weekend of Mar 23,24, but the dry pattern will begin to break down that weekend.  
Models hint at a return to BELOW normal temperatures and rain/showers/mountain snow as the last several days of March arrive.  Will this verify?  Will March end like a Lion (just like it started) and not a Lamb?  For now, plan on wet weather returning after the 24th and hope a change for the better will take place instead.  Time to work the land and set up those garden plots.
☘️ In the meantime, take full advantage of an amazing stretch of delightful weather coming to a sky near you starting Wednesday March 13.
“It’s not the coffee that keeps people awake these days, but the price of it."
-Rufus
Copyright © 1994-2024 - All Rights Reserved - The Weather Café ®
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Exuberant

Posted by Rufus La Lone on

Friday March 8
We love it when wx models revert back to their earlier projections.  Such is the case forming the basis of this forecast.  Get your Mug ready, there’s good news.
A chilly, damp weekend is upon us, with rain moving in later tonight (north-to-south) and tomorrow.  Snow in the mountains, where we like it, and cold showers at the surface throughout the weekend.  Monday will present another round of rain & subsequent showers.  Breezy at times.
🌼 🌸 🪴 Beginning Tue Mar 12, clearing will begin from the north, with the start of a much-needed DRY SPELL that is charting to last well over a WEEK begins.  Indeed.  Temperatures will also be mild-to-warm, notching up a few degrees throughout the period.  People, plants, animals, and well, whatever, will all be exuberant.  The dry period will last long enough to allow soils to dry-down for growers & gardeners to work the land in prep for plantings, fertilizing, etc.  Early Spring blossoms will explode with color; trees will leaf-out; lawns will get mowed.  Coats put away.  Alright, admittedly, your host is getting a bit too carried away.  It is justified, if the models verify.  
Key Point: after Tue Mar 12, the dry pattern should extend past the first day of Spring (Wed Mar 20) and hold into Fri Mar 22.  Temps will work into the high 50s, then the 60s, and possibly the low 70s, esp southern OR.
St Patrick’s Day is now trending dry & pleasantly warm.  All the green will be spring growth.  Naturally.
The weekend of Mar 23,24 is trending wet, with mild temperatures.  
We all know these wx outlooks are subject to change, but for now, let’s be ready for an exuberant start to Spring 2024. 
“Happiness is like your shadow.  Run after it and you will never catch it, but keep your face to the sun and it will follow you.”  
-Rufus
Copyright © 1994-2024 - All Rights Reserved - The Weather Café ®
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Cool

Posted by Rufus La Lone on

Monday March 4
So many places around the PNW experienced a bit of The White as March 2024 got started.  While we see a few warmer days on the charts, there are indications that the balance of ‘winter’ will remain on the chilly side.  The Spring Equinox is March 20.  Mug time is now.  
Chilly days this week, with the good news being that the moisture will slowly diminish, yielding crisp (hopefully sunny) afternoons mid-week.  Showers will slowly fade away, north-to-south, over the next 24 hrs.  Frosty mornings possible Wed & Thu, if the sky clears in your location.  Dry, except for a swath across southern OR on into ID, Tue through Fri.  Vancouver Is may get some cloudiness Fri.
The coming weekend will present more rain and warmer temps, with a southerly flow, as a cold front stretches out along the west coast, slowly moving onshore over BC and WA first on Sat, OR and east late Sunday.  The new round of colder air pooling over the eastern Pacific will work its way onshore, similar to last week, for increasing rain/showers and snow levels dropping below the passes.  While this event does not chart as cold as the last, it will be cold enough aloft for development of intense showers, possible small hail, and the need for a coat Mon - Wed, Mar 11-13.  What was earlier looking to be a warmer, multi-day dry spell late next week, is now looking rather damp, but still warmer.  A sunny day or two remains on the charts Fri & Sat, Mar 15,16, before COLD rain returns on St Patty’s Day.  
The week of Mar 18-22 is trending damp early, cool, then, SPRING-like mild for a couple days, starting with Spring Equinox.  We’ll see.
California will DRY OUT starting Wed Mar 13.  The dry weather should hold in the Golden State through at least Mar 22.  Seasonably warmer, which will help with Almond pollination.
“You hear a good many echoes in the world but mighty few real voices."
-Rufus
Copyright © 1994-2024 - All Rights Reserved - The Weather Café ®
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