~Summer Around the Pacific Northwest~
Fire Weather Watches have been upgraded to Red Flag Warnings effective Saturday, 11am-11pm * Air Quality Alerts also continue for parts of our forecast area * Click here for complete details.......
Exclusive Inland NW Summary Issued: Friday, July 31, 2026 @ 4:45am
WRITTEN BY: Climatologist Bob Lutz
(Summaries are issued as needed and will be updated more frequently during times of active weather)
SHORT-TERM FORECAST
There is increasing confidence that a storm system moving through southern Canada will send a dry cold front into the region on Saturday, which will result in another period of ELEVATED WILDFIRE ACTIVITY. In the meantime, expect hot, dry weather to continue through much of Saturday, with the strongest winds arriving during the afternoon hours. Sunday will see a brief period of cooler weather, and it will continue to be on the breezy side. The new workweek will see high temperatures heading back up again, and the afternoons could also be locally breezy. Moisture sliding to our north could result in an isolated shower in the northern zones early in the week, but it will otherwise remain extremely dry. Smoke and haze will continue to be problematic in some areas as well.
LONG-TERM FORECAST
The strong SW high pressure ridge currently shows no signs of releasing its grip on the Inland Northwest anytime soon as the West remains stuck in a rather stagnant pattern. The result will be more of the same hot and dry weather going into the foreseeable future. Temperatures will fluctuate at times but still average above normal for the most part. There are some hints of possible scattered shower activity during the second week of August as moisture slides down out of Canada, but chances at this time remain iffy.
General Long-Term Model Agreement: EXCELLENT
General Long-Term Model Agreement: EXCELLENT
