There is a lot to cover tonight. I’ll start with the highlights and details for the Salem area.

Highlights and details for Salem

1.) Winds will become increasingly strong Sunday afternoon ahead of a potent cold front. Wind gusts of 35 to 45mph seem likely beginning around 2 or 3PM Sunday, and should last until just before sunrise Monday morning. Expect localized flooding again across the valley and the entire region for that matter. Flooding could be worse than what we saw in December with nearly 2 inches expected to fall with this storm here in Salem and up to 4 inches of rain (or melted snow) in the mountains. The heavy rain plus melting snow from the Coast Range will cause a sharp rise on area rivers and streams.

2.) Another half inch of rain falls on Tuesday along with more mountain snow.

3.) Wednesday should be fairly tame with a few sunbreaks and not much in the way of rain at all.

4.) Another wet storm system moves in Thursday and Friday bringing another inch plus of rain and more mountain snow.

The coast

High winds and powerful waves will create hazardous conditions for all communities along highway 101. Could be a great couples of days to storm watch as long as you are protected from the surf. Coastal flooding is likely Sunday afternoon through Monday. Waves will range from 30 to 40 feet!

The Coast Range

Heavy snow will fall Monday above about 1500′ The lower passes like highways 22 and 18 between Salem and the coast should see more in the way of heavy rain or a rain snow mix than accumulating snow (subject to change), but that’s not to say travel won’t be awful along those highways still. The higher elevations could end up with 8 to 12 inches of new snow. Snow will continue through Tuesday before warmer air moves Wednesday.

The Cascades

Heavy, heavy snow Sunday night through Tuesday with 30 to 40 inches of new snow falling during this time frame! Terrible driving conditions with gusty winds to boot. Not a good time for mountain travel at all. Below is a map showing total snowfall now through 4AM Tuesday morning. Keep in mind the snow continues up in the mountains for the remainder of Tuesday.

I’ll keep on eye out for any changes. As you can see from this map snow levels will be quite low over the next few days, so any changes in temps could lead to major changes in who does or doesn’t receive snowfall.

It’s just been one thing after another lately, and there is no sign of things slowing down yet…. Maybe some hope for dry weather next weekend and the week after, but let’s not get too excited as we have a busy week of crazy weather to get through first.

Have a great rest of your weekend!

Phew! It’s been a busy week both in my personal life being Christmas time and all, and of course in the weather department too! First things first. There shouldn’t be any accumulating snow here in Salem that will effect travel or your life in any way. Portland and areas north of us could see some snow briefly before changing to rain, but this particular storm is mostly going to effect areas north of us. The Gorge and the Cascade passes will also be extremely snowy Thursday, so use caution if you’re heading those directions.

Okay, looking back over the past few days I’m happy with how the forecast panned out overall. As time went on it became clear that we weren’t going to be quite as cold as originally thought, but we still managed 4 days in a row with highs in the 30s with 1 or 2 more sub 40 degree days still to go this weekend before things “warm up.” Fairly impressive for our somewhat mild climate.

In regards to the snow I was very happy to see everyone in the mid Willamette Valley saw at least 3 or 4 inches of snow, and many of you saw even more than that. In fact I’ve heard reports from faithful viewers that a few (lucky) spots got close to 8 inches of snow. This map shows total snowfall in inches over the past 7 days.

You can see the swath of purple to the south and west of Salem indicating totals over 6 inches. Tons of snow up in the Coast and Cascade Ranges too! Remember when I posted this snowpack map from December 6th?

Very little snow to begin the month, but now look at where we are at as of the 29th….

Looking much better as most of the state now has an above normal snowpack!

Extended outlook

A very cold rain on Thursday with mountain snow.

Thursday night and Friday morning could be quite icy again with lows dropping below freezing as another weak push of cold air moves back into our area. Please lookout for black ice when traveling Friday morning.

Friday through Sunday look mostly dry (maybe a few showers), but basically dry and cool. Highs in the upper 30s and lows in the 20s. Lots of sun and some really good weather for get togethers and new year plans.

I won’t even talk about next week yet, but look out for more updates as next week is looking stormy.

Take care!

Highlights

Here’s the plan. Tonight we will continue to see rain showers with snow mixing in at times.
Christmas Day: A mix of rain and snow showers – more snow than rain and turning to all snow through the day. The chances for accumulating snow will also increase as the day goes on. Anyone could see a white Christmas if you get lucky.

Christmas night through Monday morning: Snow showers for everyone. Pretty decent chance everyone sees at least 1 or 2 inches, and many of you could see closer to 3 to 6 inches! All depends on where the lines of heavy snow showers set up. This picture shows what the radar might look like early Sunday morning. Basically lots of snow showers which means not everyone is going to see the same amount of snow, but everyone should get at least an inch or 2 at a minimum.

Temperatures stay right around freezing Sunday.

Monday – Wednesday will see a hard freeze with highs struggling to get out of the 20s, and lows in the teens or even single digits. Extremely cold weather and colder than anything we have seen in several years. Watching the potential for another snowstorm Tuesday. More details another day.

Plan on snowy and icy roads beginning at some point on Christmas everywhere west of the Cascades and lasting through Wednesday at least.

Merry Christmas!! Be safe and have a lot of fun!!!

If you have followed my site for any length of time then you know this is one of my favorite sayings, and it is extremely appropriate considering the weather we will soon be seeing.

First off, a short recap of the wild weather we saw over the weekend. The heavy rain and localized flooding showed up as expected. Salem received over 3 inches of rain between Saturday evening and Minday night!! That much rain in such a short time is bound to create flooding, and sure enough that’s exactly what happened on a number of our smaller and medium sized creeks and rivers. No fancy images to go with this post, but when I do my December recap I’ll definitely revisit this particular storm.

As far as the snow forecast went Saturday night, I have to say I’m happy with how it turned out. We had a very marginal setup and everything came together just right in the Portland metro area to drop a slushy 1 to 2 inches of snow even near the center of town. Extremely impressive considering the temps just 6 hours prior were in the mid 50s! Salem dropped down to 37, but never managed to go any lower. I knew it was possible we could miss out on the snow knowing that it was extremely marginal to begin with, and sure enough we got nothing.

Now, looking ahead I see a much much colder (possibly arctic) airmass moving in this weekend and even more so next week.

A mix of rain and snow showers the 24th and 25th. Plan on no widespread snow on the valley floor through the daylight hours on Christmas, but both the Coast Range and the Cascades will have snowy roads. Please keep in mind that when we are in a showery pattern like the one we will see on Christmas Eve and Christmas day, anyone could see a brief coating of snow with the heavier showers.

Sunday and Monday we continue to turn colder and colder with moisture still around. At this time it appears we have a decent chance at seeing accumulating snow here in Salem both these days. Subject to lots of changes. I’ll definitely have more updates in the coming days, but those days are looking like they could be quite wintry.

Next Tuesday and beyond it is looking to stay very cold with more opportunities for more snow likely. No sign whatsoever of any mild winter weather.

Stay safe out there!

We have a wild three days of weather ahead with a lot going on. First we have gusty winds (as you have probably noticed) with gusts up to 30mph. Gusts could turn even stronger as a powerful cold front slides south.

Heavy rain will turn to a heavy wet snow tonight for many locations between Salem and Portland. The snow may not stick all that much, but it will make for extremely hazardous travel conditions. This is a situation where the precip will be falling heavy enough behind the cold front to literary drag the snow level to the valley floor. This radar image shows what conditions should look like around 6pm. Lots of heavy rain with the front moving through…

But then the front stalls out and the snow level plummets. Here is what the radar might look like by the time we reach midnight.

Heavy snow could last for several hours before switching back to rain Sunday morning as the atmosphere overhead warms back up thanks to a warm front moving in.

Steady rain continues all day Sunday and Monday dropping over 3 inches of rain across the region between this evening and Monday night. Flooding is a concern I have as snow melt is coupled with heavy rain. This will lead to sharp rises on the area’s creeks, and rivers. Keep a close eye if you live in a flood prone area. Check out these rainfall totals through Monday night.

But that is not all folks lol. Cold air will surge south from Canada and strong east winds will transport it westerward through the Columbia River Gorge. This will result in freezing rain and heavy snow along l-84 in the Gorge specifically on Sunday. So if you are traveling through the Gorge Sunday all I will say is the odds are not in your favor.

Cold and potentially snowy weather is still on track to move in around the 23rd or 24th and could potentially last through the rest of the month. More on that later. Let’s just make it through the next 3 days safely first. Have a great weekend and stay safe!!!

First off I hope everyone knows just how close we were to snow this past Wednesday. I greatly dislike these close call scenarios. Last January Salem saw a surprise snow event in a fairly similar setup. I was not expecting snow here in Salem Wednesday, but I 100% mentioned it as being a possibility if everything had come together just right. Turns out we ended up with a very cold rain. Some of you saw snow mixing during the morning and the Coast Range saw a fair amount of snow, but right here in Salem we avoided the snow, this time… 😉 🙂

Friday should stay mostly, if not completely dry. Lots of clouds, maybe some sunbreaks too.

Showers and increasing periods of rain on Saturday. Fairly mild too.

Sunday will be rainy. In fact I have concerns we may see flooding on some of our rivers. Check out how much snow has fallen over the past 7 days.

Many of the higher elevations in the Coast Range have over a foot of heavy wet snow on the ground, and there are several feet up in the Cascades. Now look at how much rain is expected between now and Monday night. Keep in mind most of this is forecast to fall in just two days – Sunday and Monday.

I will likely have an update Saturday concerning the potential for flooding. Keep this on your radar.

Showers stick around for both Tuesday and Wednesday of next week with snow levels lowering back down below pass levels which means the Cascades should still have excellent Christmas break skiing conditions!!!!

Even colder weather is still on track to move in around Christmas. Not sure yet how cold or if we will see snow, but I will be keeping an eye on this over the coming days. Definitely looking cool/colder in the long term.

Have a fantastic evening and a great Friday!!