If this relatively nice weather has you thinking about getting out on the water and maybe having a practice day before the start of Center Sound next weekend, Saturday will be the day. If, on the other hand, you want a heavy weather practice day, Sunday will work. Then it will return to rain, wind, and coolish temps for all of next week.
The charts for today and tomorrow show an interesting layout for the weather this weekend with weak low-pressure systems to the north and south of us. Offshore, the Pacific High remains unusually stable at 1038MB at 42N 152W with weaker high-pressure on the east side of the Cascades. Today’s sat pic shows the stronger low-pressure system with its front as the classic comma shape off the central California Coast. The higher resolution sat pic shows very little cloud cover over the Salish Sea and that will hold for tomorrow.
For Saturday this configuration of highs and lows will create a strong onshore flow coming down the Strait of JdF and through the Chehalis Gap. This will result in a nice southerly flow of 10-20 knots over the Central and South Sound, extending north into Admiralty Inlet and the San Juan Islands. Over the day on Saturday the flow down the Strait will become the dominant feature and flow through the Chehalis Gap will ease. By late afternoon and into the early evening Saturday the SW breeze in the Straits will build and extend into San Juans. This will bring a lighter breeze to the Sound and Admiralty Inlet.
On Sunday the 995MB low with attached frontal system over Haida Gwaii will drift slowly to SE and aim for the Salish Sea. This will have the effect of increasing the NW flow down the Strait of JdF and through the Chehalis Gap. By mid-morning expect 15-25 knots of westerly in the Straits, and 10-20 knots of southerly in the Central and South Sound. YES, even in Olympia. 😊
By mid-afternoon on Sunday, the flow down the Straits will increase to 25-35 knots while flow in the Central and South Sound will increase to 15-25 knots. Yes, even in Olympia. The other interesting feature of this will be that the convergence zone in the North and Central Sound will be very small and relatively fast-moving as it comes down the Sound. After dark in the North Sound and Admiralty Inlet expect 25-35 knots of NNW.
Oh yeah, there will also be rain on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, etc etc. Right now we are about an inch behind for the month but that may change by the end of the month.
Have a great weekend!
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)
“Even in Olympia “ funny man 🙂