By Rod Hill on 2014-01-10
Only one day, December 1st, has seen more than .50 inches of rain since a record setting storm dumped more than 3.00 inches at PDX the last three days of September. A strong cold front set to arrive before the daylight hours of Saturday shows promise of bringing needed heavy rainfall of an inch or more over a two day period. The same storm will likely bring feet of snow to Mt. Hood resorts this coming weekend.
Precipitation maps from the National Weather Service River Forecast center show 2-4" of potential rain Friday and Friday night over the Coast Range, which could bring flooding to small streams. The same weather system will bring inches of precipitation Saturday and Sunday morning to the Cascades. If snow levels hold near and below 5,000 feet, ski slopes will see 2-3 feet of snow on top of the 12 inches that fell Wednesday and Thursday.
Both the valley and Mt. Hood have seen only 40% of expected precipitation so far this water year. A series of good storms like the one arriving this weekend will be needed to catch up. Total snowfall at Timberline Lodge is down roughly 200 inches when compared to one year ago.
Be sure and keep updated with the forecast this weekend. If you are heading to the beach, rough seas could reach 35 feet high Saturday night, following a day of high winds.
Dry weather going into the record book