Finally the weather in the NW will trend back towards “normal”. Whatever that is. The good news is that we’re going to have a very weak set of weather systems sweep over the top of us and this will keep the cloud cover and onshore flow in place as well as keep the smoke from coming in again.
The interesting feature in the charts this week is the Pacific High which over the course of the next four days will continue to weaken from 1033MB down to 1026MB and will go from round to a more flattened high-pressure system as these weak low-pressure systems continue to degrade it.
As I said, this will keep the onshore flow in place which will have the usual effect of creating strong westerlies in the central and eastern part of the Straits of JdF for this evening and into tomorrow. This will ease over the weekend making the trip home from the San Juans or Gulf Islands a nice voyage.
For Sunday morning expect light breeze from the west in the Straits which will become southerly in the northern inland waters and northerly in Admiralty Inlet and Puget Sound. Monday morning will have a northwesterly flow come down the Strait of Georgia and then fill down into Admiralty Inlet and Puget Sound. The Strait of Georgia will have slightly more wind than the rest of the Salish Sea, 15-18 knots compared to 5-10 for Puget Sound.
Here’s Hanalei Valley on Kauai, where a ton of rain took its toll.Have a great Labor Day Weekend and as always, check the VHF weather for conditions along your intended route.
Bruce has raced and cruised the Pacific Northwest his entire life. He earned a Bachelor’s of Science from the University of Washington in Biological Oceanography and learned meteorology “to keep from getting kicked around on the race course.” Bruce spent nearly two decades as Associate Publisher for Northwest Yachting Magazine, retiring in mid-2015, and was the chairman of the board of trustees for the Northwest Marine Trade Association in 2014. (photo of Bruce driving Playstation is a bit dated, but cool)