a Special Weather Statement

From the National Weather Service office in Sacramento: A WEATHER SYSTEM PRESENTLY ALONG THE COAST OF BRITISH COLUMBIA WILL MOVE QUICKLY SOUTHWARD INTO FAR NORTHERN CALIFORNIA ON MONDAY BEFORE SHIFTING EAST INTO THE ROCKIES ON TUESDAY. A VARIETY OF WEATHER IMPACTS ARE EXPECTED AS THE WEATHER SYSTEM MOVES THROUGH THE REGION INCLUDING AN INCREASING CHANCE OF SHOWERS ACROSS MAINLY THE HIGHER TERRAIN LATER TONIGHT AND MONDAY...STRONG GUSTY NORTHERLY WINDS DEVELOPING IN ITS WAKE ON TUESDAY AND BRINGING MUCH COOLER TEMPERATURES. SCATTERED SHOWERS ARE FORECAST TO DEVELOP ACROSS THE NORTHERN MOUNTAINS TONIGHT AND SPREAD SOUTH AND INCREASE IN COVERAGE OVER THE NORTHERN SIERRA ON MONDAY. A FEW SHOWERS WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE IN THE VALLEY. ACCUMULATING SNOWFALL MAY BECOME AN ISSUE ACROSS THE NORTHERN SIERRA PASSES BEGINNING EARLY MONDAY AND CONTINUING INTO EARLY TUESDAY. SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS OF A INCH OR SO WILL BE POSSIBLE DOWN TO AROUND THE 5000 FOOT LEVEL WHILE UP TO 5 INCHES MAY ACCUMULATE ALONG THE NORTHERN SIERRA CREST...SO MOTORISTS PLANNING TRAVEL OVER THE PASSES MONDAY SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR WINTER WEATHER CONDITIONS. GUSTY NORTH WINDS WILL DEVELOP IN THE WAKE OF THIS SYSTEM ACROSS THE INTERIOR OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA ON TUESDAY. NORTH WINDS OF 20 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS TO AROUND 40 MPH WILL BE POSSIBLE...SO DIFFICULT DRIVING CONDITIONS CAN BE EXPECTED AND THERE WILL BE POTENTIAL FOR DOWNED TREES AND LOCAL POWER OUTAGES. DRY AND WARMER WEATHER WITH LESS BREEZY CONDITIONS WILL RETURN BY MID-WEEK.

nice weather

While some parts of the country are dealing with wintry weather conditions, we here in Northern California are enjoying warm and calm weather. The high temperature in Chico yesterday was a pleasant 82 degrees, along with bright sunshine and light breezes. Today will be another gorgeous day for outdoor activities, with sunshine and highs in the mid 70s. It may become breezy to windy at times as we head into late Sunday and Monday, so a Bad Hair Day Alert (the third one in a week's time) may be issued. Along with those windy conditions, temps will cool down, as well- mainly in the mid to upper 60s for early next week. However, the winds will slacken by midweek, and highs will warm back into the lower 80s by the end of next week. No rain is in the forecast for the next seven days. Here's Chico's forecast from the National Weather Service: Today Mostly sunny, with a high near 75. Light north wind becoming northwest 5 to 10 mph in the morning. Tonight Partly cloudy, with a low around 46. North northwest wind 7 to 10 mph. Sunday Mostly sunny, with a high near 71. West northwest wind 5 to 11 mph. Sunday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 44. Calm wind becoming north northwest 5 to 9 mph after midnight. Monday Mostly sunny, with a high near 65. Northwest wind 7 to 11 mph. Monday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 42. Tuesday Sunny, with a high near 68. Tuesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 45. Wednesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 74. Wednesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 49. Thursday Sunny, with a high near 77. Thursday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 51. Friday Sunny, with a high near 80.

another bad hair day

I'm going to post another Bad Hair Day Alert, as winds are expected to gust to over 20 mph from the northwest today. It's spring, and it is usually fairly breezy this time of year. Winds shouldn't be nearly as strong today as they were on Monday. Sunshine will dominate the next seven days There is a slight chance of showers on Monday; otherwise, expect dry, mild weather the next several days. Highs should range from the mid 70s to the lower 80s today through Sunday, with a cooldown on Monday. Highs for the beginning of next week should be in the upper 60s to lower 70s Monday through Wednesday of next week. The long range outlook trends drier than normal through the end of next month. Most Northern California reservoirs are only 80-85% full for this time of year. We need more precipitation, but are not going to get it. Here's Chico's seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Today Mostly sunny, with a high near 77. North northwest wind 9 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 23 mph. Tonight Mostly clear, with a low around 49. Northwest wind 6 to 11 mph. Friday Sunny, with a high near 80. Northwest wind 7 to 10 mph. Friday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 51. South wind around 5 mph becoming north northeast in the evening. Saturday Mostly sunny, with a high near 77. Calm wind becoming northwest around 6 mph in the afternoon. Saturday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 51. Sunday Partly sunny, with a high near 70. Sunday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 45. Monday A slight chance of showers. Mostly sunny, with a high near 67. Monday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 43. Tuesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 70. Tuesday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 44. Wednesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 71.

return to mild and sunny weather

I'm back! Was it windy yesterday, or what? It was a bumpy ride as my plane was landing in Sacramento yesterday. I was admiring the countryside from the air; it was very green in the valley, with the snow-capped Sierra Nevada in the background. We do live in a beautiful area of the country! Anyway, winds gusted up to 40 mph in the Chico area yesterday, after a cold front moved through and dropped a quarter of an inch of rain. Dry weather stays in the forecast for the next week, as high pressure builds in. It will still be breezy today and tomorrow, but not as much as yesterday. So I'm issuing a Bad Hair Day Alert for today, at least. High temperatures through the forecast period will be in the mid 70s to the mid 80s, with lows in the upper 40s to around 50 degrees. Here's Chico's seven day outlook from the National Weather Service: Today Sunny, with a high near 75. Northwest wind 8 to 18 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Tonight Mostly clear, with a low around 50. Northwest wind 11 to 16 mph decreasing to 5 to 10 mph after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 23 mph. Wednesday Sunny, with a high near 83. Calm wind becoming north northwest 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon. Wednesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 54. Light north northwest wind increasing to 8 to 13 mph after midnight. Thursday Mostly sunny, with a high near 77. West wind 14 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 23 mph. Thursday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 51. Friday Sunny, with a high near 78. Friday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 51. Saturday Partly sunny, with a high near 78. Saturday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 51. Sunday Partly sunny, with a high near 73. Sunday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 48. Monday Mostly sunny, with a high near 71.

more wet weather on the way

Yesterday was stellar in the Northstate, with sunny skies and highs in the mid 70s (it reached 75 degrees in Chico). Today will be a carbon copy of yesterday, with a few degrees tacked on to today's forecast highs. However, all good things must come to an end, as they say. A cold front will invade our area tomorrow, bringing breezy conditions and rain showers to the valley, while snow will fall in the higher elevations of the Sierra Nevada (above 6000 feet). Expect 2-4 inches of snow above that elevation, while only about a third of an inch of rain is expected to fall in the valley. This is not a big, potent storm by any means. This system will move out of the area by Friday, with another system right behind which will bring more showers Friday night and into Saturday morning. A slight chance of showers lingers Sunday into Monday before the sun returns by next Tuesday. High temperatures will be in the mid to upper 70s today, mid 60s tomorrow, around 70 for Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and back to the mid 70s by next week. This will be my last blog posting until next week, as I am going out of town this weekend. Have a wonderful weekend! Here's Chico's seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Today Mostly sunny, with a high near 76. Calm wind becoming south around 6 mph in the afternoon. Tonight Mostly cloudy, with a low around 53. Southeast wind 5 to 7 mph. Thursday Showers. High near 64. South southeast wind 9 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible. Thursday Night A 50 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 50. Southeast wind 9 to 11 mph. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. Friday A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 69. South southeast wind around 10 mph. Friday Night A 40 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 50. Saturday A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 70. Saturday Night A slight chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 48. Sunday A chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 71. Sunday Night A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 46. Monday A slight chance of showers. Mostly sunny, with a high near 73. Monday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 48. Tuesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 76.

Special Weather Statement

From the National Weather Service office in Sacramento: PACIFIC STORM MOVES THROUGH THURSDAY INTO THURSDAY NIGHT... IMPACTS: * SNOW WITH GUSTY WINDS COULD CAUSE POSSIBLE TRAVEL DELAYS AND CHAIN REQUIREMENTS IN THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS OF THE NORTHERN SIERRA NEVADA. * SLICK ROADWAYS COULD LEAD TO INCREASED TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS. NEXT PACIFIC STORM IS EXPECTED TO MOVE THROUGH INTERIOR NORTHERN CALIFORNIA THURSDAY INTO THURSDAY NIGHT. LIGHT TO MODERATE PRECIPITATION WILL DEVELOP OVER THE FORECAST AREA THURSDAY MORNING...TURNING SHOWERY THURSDAY AFTERNOON INTO THURSDAY NIGHT. THE SHOWER ACTIVITY WILL DIMINISH BY EARLY FRIDAY AND THEN BE CONFINED TO MAINLY THE NORTHERN INTERIOR MOUNTAINS. RAINFALL AMOUNTS IN THE CENTRAL VALLEY LOOK TO RANGE FROM AROUND A THIRD OF AN INCH OR LESS. IN THE FOOTHILLS AND MOUNTAINS... PRECIPITATION AMOUNTS WILL VARY FROM A FEW TENTHS TO UPWARDS OF AN INCH OVER THE HIGHER TERRAIN. SNOW LEVELS WILL INITIALLY BE AROUND 7000 TO 8000 FEET THURSDAY MORNING BUT WILL LOWER TO AROUND 6000 TO 7000 FEET BY FRIDAY MORNING AS THE STORM IS WINDING DOWN. SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS UP TO 5 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE ABOVE 7000 FEET WITH LOCALLY 1 TO 2 INCHES POSSIBLE DOWN TO AROUND 6000 FEET. LOCALLY BREEZY SOUTH TO SOUTHWEST WINDS OF 15 TO 30 MPH ARE POSSIBLE OVER HIGHER TERRAIN THURSDAY. LONGER RANGE FORECAST MODELS ARE SHOWING VARYING SOLUTIONS AT THIS TIME BUT THE POSSIBILITY EXISTS FOR UNSETTLED WEATHER OVER THE WEEKEND...ESPECIALLY IN THE MOUNTAINS.

beneficial rain

Chico received .64" between midnight and 9 am yesterday morning, and then an additional quarter of an inch with a thundershower last evening. There was no severe weather in the Chico area yesterday; that was all south of us in the southern Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys. Areas near Tracy and Manteca received copious amounts of rain which led to urban flooding, as well as reports of hail and lightning. Again, nothing like that here. The wet weather is done for the next few days as high pressure moves in. There is a slight chance of a shower today, but otherwise, the sun will be out and temps will warm up. Highs tomorrow and Wednesday may push 80 degrees! By Thursday, another storm moves through, bringing valley rain and high elevation snow. Showers could linger all the way through next weekend as a series of weak disturbances affect our area. Here is Chico's seven day forecast from the National Weather Service: Today Isolated showers after 11am. Partly sunny, with a high near 69. Calm wind becoming south southeast around 6 mph in the morning. Chance of precipitation is 20%. Tonight Partly cloudy, with a low around 47. South southeast wind around 6 mph becoming calm in the evening. Tuesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 77. Calm wind becoming west northwest around 5 mph in the afternoon. Tuesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 50. Calm wind. Wednesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 77. Calm wind becoming south southeast around 5 mph in the afternoon. Wednesday Night A 20 percent chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 53. Thursday Rain likely. Cloudy, with a high near 67. Chance of precipitation is 70%. Thursday Night A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 50. Friday A chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 71. Friday Night A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 49. Saturday A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 70. Saturday Night A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 45. Sunday A chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 68.