Rain, wind and almost a foot of snow coming to Oregon this holiday weekend

It's going to be a wet and wild holiday weekend in northwest Oregon.

Heavy rain and wind are expected in the Willamette Valley Friday through Monday while a mixture of heavy rain and snow is projected for Cascade Mountain passes.

The best day for outdoor recreation will likely come Monday.

“It’s going to be pretty active this weekend,” National Weather Service meteorologist Amanda Bowen said.

The wildest weather in Oregon will likely be in the south. 

In the Willamette Valley and Salem area, around one and a half to two inches of rain is expected with wind gusts Friday up to 35 mph.

That could mean possible downed trees and power outages, with the most concerning time coming Friday night.

“The wind should kick up this afternoon and evening, then should die down pretty well for the rest of the weekend,” Bowen said.

In the Cascade Mountain passes, the weekend will begin with heavy rain before cooling off and bringing heavy snow to pass levels.

The snow is expected to reach pass levels around Saturday afternoon, eventually bringing 10 to 15 inches to Santiam and Willamette passes into Monday.

The roadways most impacted are likely to include U.S. Highway 20 and Highway 58 between the Willamette Valley and Central Oregon. 

“We’re expecting a good bit of snow in the 3,000- to 4,000-foot range,” Bowen said. “We’ll actually see more snow south of Mount Jefferson than in the Mount Hood area.”

The higher ski areas could see a few feet of snow, she said.

The weather is expected to mellow out by Monday — with partly sunny skies. The holiday should be a good time for a waterfall hike in the lower elevations or skiing, snowboarding or snowshoeing in the mountains.

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On the Oregon Coast, heavy rain and wind are expected across the weekend, with some big gusts of wind as well.

“The river levels are pretty low out there or we might have been worried about flooding,” Bowen said. “But otherwise, it’s pretty much what people on the coast would normally expect.”

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The wildest weather by far is expected in the southern half of the state, where more rain and snow is expected and flooding is possible. 

Zach Urness has been an outdoors writer, photographer videographer and weather nerd n Oregon for 11 years. He is the author of the book “Best Hikes with Kids: Oregon” and “Hiking Southern Oregon.” He can be reached at zurness@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6801. Find him on Twitter at @ZachsORoutdoors.