Snow West of the Cascades Starting Thursday Night

Temperatures will be cold enough for snow to stick.

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - A cold air mass will remain over the Pacific Northwest through the weekend, and potentially much of next week as well. This will likely result in additional chances for low elevation snowfall.

The next possibility for low elevation snow will be on Thursday night into Friday morning. A band of light precipitation is expected to develop over the region during this time, which will likely result in some snow flurries with little to no accumulation for many locations.

However, there are some indications that a steadier snow band will develop, which could result in anywhere from a dusting to up to one inch of snow on the ground by Friday morning.

Temperatures will be cold enough for snow to stick to paved surfaces. This could create some travel issues during the Friday morning commute.

A more significant weather system will arrive Friday night and Saturday. Snow levels are expected to rise during the day Friday, with precipitation likely to fall as mainly rain below 1000 feet through much of Friday night.

However, snow levels will be lowering again by early Saturday morning and will potentially be hovering between sea level and 1000 feet through much of Saturday and Saturday night.

There will likely be heavier bands of precipitation which bring accumulating snowfall to some areas at the lowest elevations, while other low elevation areas will see lighter precipitation and little to no snow accumulation.

There is still low confidence as to where the heavier bands will set up, and what what snowfall amounts can be expected. At this time, we advise checking the forecast frequently over the next couple of days as details come into better focus.