Warmer temps on the way, with a ‘sprinkle' day or two over the next 2 weeks.  Let’s take a Mug peek, shall we?

Memorial Day Weekend:  not too bad in the weather dept.   Today’s morning clouds will yield to sunshine late day, setting up a couple of wonderful dry, warm days in the PNW.  Saturday should top in the 70s; Sunday too, but with high clouds ahead of a Memorial Day shower or two, mainly over western WA. Temps continue mild all through the holiday.

Next week will present sunny days starting Tue, with a very warm WEDNESDAY, May 28 - temps should climb into the 80s in many locations; upper 70s to low 80s around the Puget Sound, as well.  Cooler Thu with more clouds and possibly steady RAIN for a one day.  Clearing by Fri on into the weekend.  Note: most of the precip will be over western WA & southern BC, per current model solutions.

Weekend of May 31 & June 1st is trends as dry and warm.  There are variations in the model runs, however, most of the charts keep the weekend as dry and pleasant, same too for the following week of Jun 2-6, with only Fri the 6th looking to bring back a short-shot of rain north of Portland.

Weekend of Jun 7,8 also charts as dry and warm. 

In Summary: expect a chance for showers on May 26, 29, Jun 5 — all primarily north of Portland.  The rest of the extended period looks dry with mild-to-warm temps.

A dry break is coming, as is a Mug refill while scripting this latest extended outlook. 

Wet & cool today to get the week started; rather heavy showers around the Puget Sound; maybe with some thunder.  Tuesday will be on the cool side, with fewer showers.  Wed looks to be the ‘turning’ day - presenting plenty of sunshine & warmer temps.  Some charts tease a shower or two on Thu, but most runs keep it mild & dry; same for Fri May 23.  

Memorial Day Weekend: while a few model solutions are back to adding moisture during the holiday on Sunday; others keep it dry and warm, as we mentioned last time.  At the risk of being wrong, we will go with a dry weather forecast for the holiday, although it’s not likely to warm into the 80s except for portions of southern OR, esp east side.

The short, post-holiday work week of May 27-30 is looking to start wet on Tue, then dry out and begin to warm up a bit.  --> The notable heat-up we mentioned last time is now off the charts; however, that could return as we often experience the on/off model switch-a-roo many times in the past.

The weekend of May 31/June 1 is coming into ‘model view’ as partly cloudy with chance for a shower on Sat and partly cloudy on Sun but dry.  Temps in the low 60s in most locations.  

Overall, the majority of the last 11 days of May are trending as dry & mild.

Yes, indeed, we have seen a shift in time for the arrival of super-pleasant weather around the PNW.  A great ending for the rather chilly month of May 2025.  Mug up.  Read on.

This weekend will continue on the damp side, after a short break today into early Sat, then another cold air system moves is for increasing rain, possible thunderstorms (mainly over portions of OR) and cool temps.  HOWEVER, Sunday looks to turn mostly dry, as expected.  Windy east of the mountains.

Next week presents the chance for additional moisture arriving sometime Mon May 19, but that system should transit the PNW quickly, leaving cool & mostly dry conditions, along with some cloudiness, esp around the Puget Sound.  —> Eastern basins, esp OR, are likely to have WINDY periods on/off the whole week.  Other than a slight chance for a widely scattered shower or two over the Puget Sound on Wed May 21, we’ll boldly forecast a mostly dry and WARMING week after Monday the 19th.  In fact, the coming US Memorial Day Weekend is trending exceptional!

Earlier solutions presented by the wx models had a damp holiday charted, then the dampness shifted a bit to just part of the weekend: however, now the charts indicate a ridge of High pressure building over the entire PNW (BC, too) as the weekend progresses.  Furthermore, in our previous discussion, we ’saw’ a heat-up period after the holiday showing on the charts.  Well, that continues to be the scenario except that the time of arrival has shifted forward to the Memorial Day weekend.  Excellent wx for all outdoor activities honoring those that gave their life for our Nation (and, yes, for the campers and BBQ events, as well).

Bottom line: the sky will clear and the sun will shine as Memorial Day weekend gets going.  Temperatures could pop well into the upper 70s to mid 80s (warmest in the southern sector).   Also, the short work/school week after the holiday should be warm.  Temps also looking up - into the 80s, even low 90s in southern OR.  (Mid-level moisture is on the charts, riding north around a Low over NV / UT in the May 28-30 period, which could set off thunderstorms east of the Cascades).  Overall, a great ending for May.

June.  Trend is for sunny, warm conditions to continue as June opens, as the Pacific High may position favorably for pleasant PNW weather.  

Indeed, the NW flow of chilly, damp Alaska Gulf air into the PNW won’t let go.  Refill that Mug to warm up this discussion.

This week.  Cool pattern remains in place, with a break on tap for mid-to-late week.  Showers, possible thunderstorms and lots of cloudiness is the forecast for today, Monday May 12.  Not too damp over the Puget Sound though, as that pesky Low slowing fills in over southern OR.  Showers will diminish a fair amount tomorrow, but it will take until Wed afternoon to clear out the moisture.  We see a decent afternoon on Wed region wide, with temps rebounding into the 60s; a tad warmer & sunny Thu May 15, but around the Puget Sound, a band of cloudiness will move onshore with a chance for a shower; south and east of that area should remain dry & mild Thu into Fri to wrap up the week.  

The coming weekend.  Across the entire PNW, clouds and precip will increase on Sat May 17.  Cooler temps again, as well, although Sunday could end up as mostly dry & partly cloudy. 

Next week.  The repeating play of cool, damp air masses moving in from the NW will bring even more rain/showers during the week of May 19-23.  For now, models suggest Mon the 19th and Fri the 23rd as the dry, mild days of that week.  Note: it will be a rather chilly system that week, so mountain snowfall above the passes is probable.  Won’t Let Go.

Memorial Day Holiday Weekend - May 24-26.  Model solutions moved up the arrival of more rain/showers during the US holiday to late Saturday (northern WA/BC) instead of on Memorial Day itself;  Sunday is trending wet, however models hold most of the precip to the north of Portland (quite wet along the western slopes of the northern Cascades — if models verify, hikers/campers beware).  All that said, we do know model charts often change, so maybe all will be fine the holiday weekend.

We do see the potential for an extended DRY PERIOD, with seasonally warm temps, AFTER the holiday weekend; the final 6 days of May 2025 could be pleasant.  Hopefully.

As the tag line suggests, it looks like much of May will be on the cooler side of Spring, with minor amounts of precipitation.  Mug ready here, how about yours?

First, let’s deal with the periods in May that could possibly present some precip.  Unfortunately, those periods are likely to fall on the weekends.  However, please note that nothing on the charts indicates super-wet weekends, or enough rain to provide a needed "Nature’s watering”.  (At least that is what wx models have been indicating for quite some time.)  Therefore, expect cloudiness to sneak in mainly around the Puget Sound region on Saturday, with a broader shift to clouds & the chance for showers arriving across the entire PNW by Sunday as the Low we have mentioned several times develop along the southern coast of Oregon.  

On Monday May 12, that same Low will slowly move over the NW corner of CA, resulting in clouds & showers extending north into OR, esp southern OR.  Washington state may miss out on the scattered showers, although a few could pop up along the eastern slopes of the Cascades.  By Tue, clearing & cool temps will remain in play around the PNW through the rest of the week (May 13-16).  Periodic westerlies through the Columbia Gorge will keep windsurfers happy, but the wind drag on river barges will ‘burn’ a bit more fuel.

The weekend of May 17,18 should present another chance for cloudiness & precipitation.  Late Fri, a front will begin to move onshore - broadly up & down the PNW coast - and could be strong enough to set off showers region wide, with the heaviest likely over the southern 1/3 of OR, both sides of the mountains.  Models clear things out again on Sunday. the 18th.  Temps will remain a tad cooler than normal for mid-May.

May 19-23 looks dry, mild to start, however, by Wed, charts indicate a cold front (esp chilly for late May!) could move in from coastal BC, for a chilly end to the week.  Not a lot of moisture is modeled, but temperatures - IF the sky clears in your location - could tease a light frost on Fri morning, May 23.  

Holiday Peek:  That chill will NOT mess up the Memorial Day holiday weekend.  A warmer pattern is likely, with High pressure ridging into the PNW ahead of another system developing offshore - threatening some precip late Memorial Day or Tue May 27.