We’ve probably all had enough of this smoke. Unfortunately, it’s not really going to change for a while. Today’s surface chart shows the reason for this with a strengthening offshore high-pressure system (1034MB building to 1037MB) centered off of the mid-Oregon coast and a weak thermal low-pressure system (1007MB) over eastern BC, Washington, and Oregon with the Salish Sea sandwiched in between. This will give us an onshore flow which will persist over the weekend. Giving us the usual strong flow down the Straits resulting in small craft advisories for the central and eastern Straits for this evening and into Saturday but not much further.
Click any image to enlarge.
The stronger onshore flow while north-northwesterly off the coast will still be directly onshore along the coast resulting in light southerlies in the central and southern Puget Sound along the surface while the upper winds will remain from the north. This will continue to bring smoke into the Sound from British Columbia from a number forest fires that continue to burn from the north end of Vancouver Island all across BC, just take a look at the chart of current fires.
For a while this week we were hoping that a frontal system attached to a low in the Gulf of Alaska would make its way into the area Saturday and Sunday. While there may be some cloudy conditions there won’t be much, if any, rain as that front is rapidly disintegrating. See the satellite picture.
Overall, we’ll have cooler temperatures and some smoky haze however it probably won’t be as bad as earlier in the week. Don’t let that stop you from boating, it’s still summer and with school starting way too soon (for some) that will have the effect of curtailing some boating. The long-range forecast is for a lovely Indian Summer which is just about perfect boating weather and you’ll have the anchorages all to yourself.
Enjoy!
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)