Series of Storms to Slam the Northwest

A series of storms aimed at the Northwest will start on Saturday and continue well into next week. Each of the storms will bring a period of moderate to heavy rain west of the Cascades and snow in the Cascades along with lighter rain east of the Cascades along with some wind.

The first of the storms will move in Saturday with a four- to seven-hour period of moderate to heavy rain western areas with rain and showers spilling east of the Cascades in the afternoon and night.

Saturday Midday:

Along with the rain will come a period of strong coastal winds and large seas build. Seas approaching 20 feet are likely offshore by afternoon with large, crashing waves at the beaches. From the WaveWatchIII model, here are the forecast waves.

The next storm will come in Sunday night and Monday with another period of steady rain and gusty winds.

And yet another one is forecast to arrive sometime Tuesday.

Between the major storms, the weather is not likely to be dry, especially from the Cascades on west. Moist, onshore winds will cause showers between these major storms at just about any time.

Snow levels will rise ahead of each storm then fall behind the cold fronts. The heaviest snow will be above pass level, but there will be periods of snow slick travel through the passes in the periods of colder air behind the cold fronts. Above 4,500 feet, several feet of snow are likely to fall over the next week.