textproduct: Medford

DISCUSSION

/Issued 1248 PM PDT Tue Mar 24 2026/

The front is arriving, with rain spreading inland to the Cascades and winds picking up across the region. A Wind Advisory has been issued for far eastern Klamath County and Lake County from late Tuesday morning into Tuesday evening, with southwest winds of 25 to 35 mph gusting up to 55 mph. As is typical in a southwest flow pattern, winds are expected to be strongest near Winter Rim, including the Summer Lake to Silver Lake vicinity. Wind speeds will also be elevated over the Warner Mountains of eastern Modoc County.

Very little if any rain is expected to make it to the East Side with this front, with light rain over the West Side and western Siskiyou County, and periods of moderate rain at the coast and in the upper Umpqua Basin. Overall, precipitation is expected to continue through this evening and into tonight, and with high snow levels, no winter impacts are expected, even in the mountains.

Remnants of the front will linger Wednesday into Thursday with cooler temperatures that will be closer to seasonal normals, and isolated to numerous light showers, still limited to the Cascades and West Side in Oregon and far northwest Siskiyou County. Warmer and drier afternoon conditions return late in the week through next weekend, while clear to mostly clear skies under a building ridge allow for a wider diurnal range (colder morning lows). Based on NBM minimum temperature probabilities, and depending on your specific location, there is a roughly 50 to 80 percent chance of frost and/or freezing conditions for the inland West Side valleys of Oregon Wednesday night and Thursday night. WHile this is not uncommon for March, it does follow a period of record warmth that ushered in early spring growth, and this sensitive vegetation may be damaged by the cold temperatures. Colder areas, such as the East Side, the Scott Valley, and the Shasta Valley are still well within the cold season, and are almost certain to freeze.

The outlook is for a more active, but also more complex pattern of onshore flow early next week. The details of any particular fronts or periods of rain chances will depend on how and when a large blocking ridge over the northern Pacific occurs. Overall, it does look like flow will trend more from the southwest, which would result in an active, wetter pattern and cooler, more seasonable temperatures.

AVIATION...25/00Z TAFs

A cold front is still moving onshore as of this evening. Rain is falling along the front, although some heavier showers are falling behind the front and dropping visibilities down to 1 1/2 miles along the coast.

We should see MVFR ceilings along the front with visibilities still dropping down to a mile under the heavier showers. VFR conditions are more likely ahead of the front and east of the Cascades through the remainder of the TAF period.

Showers will likely persist behind the front along the coast through the remainder of the TAF period with MVFR ceilings persisting overnight west of the Cascades and along portions of the coast.

-Smith

MARINE...Updated 1245 PM PDT Tuesday, March 24, 2026

A cold front will produce south gales and very steep seas north of Cape Blanco today, with steep seas south of Cape Blanco. Steep seas linger this evening while winds veer to west and diminish. Seas become swell dominated tonight while slightly and briefly diminishing into Wednesday morning.

A thermal trough will develop Wednesday afternoon and evening, then strengthen on Thursday with strong winds south of Cape Blanco along with steep to very steep, wind wave dominated seas. Northwest winds in the waters south of Cape Blanco are likely to reach Small Craft Advisory strength Wednesday afternoon and evening, then gales are possible Thursday afternoon through Thursday night. For the waters north of Cape Blanco, winds and seas are likely to reach small craft advisory levels Thursday afternoon and continue into Thursday night.

The thermal trough is expected to push slightly offshore late Thursday night into Friday with the strongest northerly winds becoming limited to the outer portion of the waters while fresh swell likely also continues steep seas in the inner waters. Improvement is likely late Saturday into Sunday. Conditions are likely to deteriorate again early next week as the pattern becomes more active.

MFR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

OR...Wind Advisory until 8 PM PDT this evening for ORZ030-031.

CA...None.

PACIFIC COASTAL WATERS...Small Craft Advisory until 11 PM PDT this evening for PZZ350-356-370-376.

Gale Watch from Thursday afternoon through Thursday evening for PZZ356.

Gale Watch from Thursday morning through late Thursday night for PZZ376.