Big Picture:

A ridge of high pressure will dominate the pattern over the upcoming week, resulting in generally dry conditions through Thursday. The only exceptions will be the North Cascades and Idaho Panhandle who will be brushed on the southern edge of a few disturbances passing to the north.

Forecast for Western Washington:

Snow totals from Saturday ended up favoring areas along and south of I-90 as the storm track was a bit further south than I expected.

Here are the snow totals from Saturday AM to Sunday AM:

• 10" - Alpental
• 10" - Paradise
• 8" - White Pass
• 7" - Crystal Mountain
• 6" - Mt. Baker
• 5" - Snoqualmie West
• 3" - Stevens Pass
• 2" - Mission Ridge

There isn't much to talk about in the short range as a ridge of high pressures takes control. A minor disturbance will move across the Olympics and North Cascades on Monday with a few flurries possible for Baker, Stevens, and Snoqualmie with little to no accumulations, while areas further south should stay dry. 

On Tuesday, another disturbance will pass across the Olympics and Northern Cascades. Accumulations along and north of I-90 will be light and spotty, but Baker, Stevens, and Snoqualmie/Alpental could maybe pick up an inch or two if they're lucky.

Snow levels will remain just below base areas on both Monday and Tuesday. Highs on Monday and Tuesday will be in the upper 20s to low 30s. Winds will be brisk at times out of the northwest.

A more substantial warm-up will occur on Wednesday and Thursday with dry conditions and mostly sunny skies expected. Highs will reach the upper 30s to low 40s. Winds will be light on Wednesday before picking up a bit on Thursday.

Forecast for Eastern Washington/Northern Idaho:

Saturday's storm tracked further south than I expected and southern areas saw the deepest totals while Schweitzer missed out completely.

Here are the snow totals from Saturday AM to Sunday AM:

• 12" - Bluewood
• 2" - Silver Mountain
• 2" - Lookout Pass
• 2" - 49º North
• 1.5" - Mt. Spokane

Over the next several days, the Inland NW will be sandwiched in between a ridge of high pressure along the Coast and a trough of low pressure east of the Rockies.

Several weak disturbances arriving from the northwest will bring light snow showers and flurries, mainly to the Idaho Panhandle near the Montana border with mostly dry conditions for Eastern Washington.

I'm expecting light snow chances for Schweitzer, Silver, and Lookout each day from Monday to Thursday. But on any given day, accumulations will be light and spotty, generally just a trace to an inch or two at the most.

Highs will be in the 20s each day from Monday through Wednesday before peaking in the upper 20s to low 30s on Thursday afternoon (the warmest day of the week).

Forecast for Oregon:

Saturday's storm ended up tracking further south than I expected and snow totals were higher than forecast as a result, with the geographical coverage of accumulating snow also extending further south than expected.

Here are the snow totals from Saturday AM to Sunday AM:

• 8" - Mt. Hood Meadows
• 7" - Timberline
• 6" - Anthony Lakes
• 5" - Hoodoo
• 4" - Mt. Bachelor
• 3" - Mt. Hood Skibowl
• 2" - Willamette Pass
• 2" - Mt. Ashland

There isn't much to talk about in the short-range as a ridge of high pressures takes control, resulting in dry and generally sunny conditions from Monday through Thursday.

Highs on Monday and Tuesday will reach the low 30s in the Cascades before warming up into the upper 30s to low 40s on Wednesday and Thursday. Generally light winds can also be expected throughout the week.

Across the Blue Mountains, highs will be in the 20s from Monday to Wednesday before warming up into the mid 30s on Thursday. Winds will also be gusty at times out of the northwest.

The pattern will turn more active toward the end of the week as the ridge of high pressure along the West Coast begins to shift further west. This will open the door to one to two storms on Friday (Jan 26) and Saturday (Jan 27). An arctic cold front is also projected to slide into the Northwest on Saturday, ushering in colder temperatures.

Confidence is low on the details for Friday-Saturday, but I do think there's a good chance that most areas will pick up some new snow during this time, and snow levels should quickly lower following Thursday's warm-up. I really don't know what to expect yet in terms of snow amounts and which areas will be more favored than others.

Looking further out, we may dry out temporarily after Saturday (Jan 28), but I'm still expecting an active pattern with more frequent storms to return by the beginning of February. I am seeing some hints that the storm track will set up a bit southward heading into early February with Oregon being the most favored.

Thanks so much for reading! Next update on Tuesday (Jan 24).

ALAN SMITH