Some weather geeks enjoyed the New Year’s Day at Crown Point, Ore., in the Columbia River Gorge, enduring the east winds that were gusting at about 100 mph. High pressure east of the Cascade Mountains and a deep low in the Pacific Ocean combined for this short-lived event.
It’s amazing how the winds can be so strong in the Gorge and east Clark County, and just plain dead-calm at my home in the Salmon Creek area. I knew there was reason why I live on the westside of town.
On Monday, we got brushed with another weather front which brought very little rainfall but warmed the temperatures from the 30s into the mid-50s. Don’t expect much change in the overall pattern in days to come, as we get nicked by a few weather systems this week, and the bulk of the rain falls just to our north. Freezing levels remain high, although later in the week, they fall enough for a brief shot of snow in the ski areas.
The forecast for lower elevations is a few bouts of light rain, some clouds, a few sun breaks, probably a dry weekend heading our way and fairly mild temperatures for January. We are still looking at a possible change in the weather in a week to 10 days. Other than that, there’s nothing really to write home about.