Anybody in the Pacific Northwest? When is "dry" season.

[Glowing Tubes]

I'm putting together a motorcycle ride from San Francisco to Vancouver this summer.
When is the best time weather-wise to travel through the Pacific Northwest?
I figure maybe July or August?

Thanks for any help!

Richard

[huutevar]

I'm putting together a motorcycle ride from San Francisco to Vancouver this summer.
When is the best time weather-wise to travel through the Pacific Northwest?
I figure maybe July or August?

Thanks for any help!

Richard

That is when the best weather is, but there is no 'dry' season, only a less damp season.

[OlAndrew]

North of the Bay, I think it's one day in teh middle August, in even numbered years. I forget which day it is, though.

Think windshield, heated grips, waterproof gaunts, oiled horsehide, full-face bucket with shield, and get used to chilly little streams running down your neck, up your sleeves, and filling your boots.

what fun!

[morr4925]

July in northern WA has some wet times. August/September seems to be the driest month(s) of the year. I'll be making the opposite roadtrip from Bellingham to San Francisco beginning of August.

[Barefoot]

Sometimes it remains wet through the 4th of July....then it's relatively dry till late Sept/Mid Oct.
July through September are dry.

Summer afternoons on the coast are WINDY. Heat in the valley sucks in a NW wind...virtually every afternoon. Makes riding a bike in and around the coastal bluffs fun....

East of Cascades it drys out and get hot sooner. Maybe June?

[Mudder]

There will alway be wet times, but I would say from June to late Sept things are pretty dry.

[chinaski]

june 19th,between 4:19 and 5:07pm

[Carbohydrates]

Speaking as a Washingtonian: Haha good luck with that

[circusinthesky]

July to Sep. Even late June is pretty wet.

Also, there is lots of crime here, and the women never shave. Its better just to stay away.

[swollen303]

june 19th,between 4:19 and 5:07pm

Can't be true, that is a Saturday. Dry day is usually on Tuesday or Wednesday.:wave

[Carbohydrates]

It's sunny today, by the way, so if you hurry, you might just make it before it starts raining again!

[sharpshooter]

Dry?,,,,you want dry?,,, well,, let's see,,seriously, the "dry" season would usually be around the middle of July>thru Sep. Although Augest is (it seems) usually without any (or very little) rain.
Along the coast,,,,one never knows.
Along the I-5 corrider, up through the Willamette valley, it can even be hot at times during those months; Ashland, Medford, Grants Pass, and on up to Portland, can have days of weather in the '90s.

[cbguy]

along the coast, mid-July on through August and (usually) September are pretty good.

[Glowing Tubes]

Excellent, thanks for the responses.
I realize we'll probably get caught in the rain, I just want to minimize it as much as I can.
Having proper gear helps too.

Looking forward to an amazing trip up the coast, camping about half the time. Always been a dream of mine to do a trip like this. http://www.pashnit.com/forum/images/smilies/riding.gif

Any info on "must see" areas near the coast are appreciated as well.

Thanks again,

Richard

[* velcro-fly *]

june 19th,between 4:19 and 5:07pm

That's correct, Sir :dude

[pmcqueen]

You absolutely HAVE to stop somewhere on the Oregon coast.
Sorry if this offends anyone, but it has the best beaches on the west coast.
I used to go to a little seaside town called Oceanside (get it?) every summer and go agate hunting.. some of the fondest memories of my life, really. It's close to Tillamook.
Stop there for the night, get the tide schedule and get out when the tide is furthest out and you can find some really cool rocks.. if that's your thing.. I guess I have sort of an uncanny thing for rock collecting. Maybe I need a pet rock?

[patl]

The joke (?) in Seattle is that summer starts on July 5, the day after the fireworks light up the rainclouds on Independance Day.

Have a great trip. I ride those roads a lot myself, and it's hard to find really bad ones (except for I-5) in most of northern CA, OR and WA.

[52ftbuddha]

Coos bay state park. It will rain..... I suspect our mild winter will bring lots of rain. Best riding in the country, BC is better still. My pick would be late Aug early Sept, unlike some areas we have many microclimes. The guy above is not many miles from me but is likely having completely different weather. Clear blue sky and sun in seabeck right now, but like the UK if you dont like it wait 5 min it will change.

rob

[Armchair Bronco]

300 days of rain per year, baby!

Now, a "rain day" is any day with measurable precipitation...but 300 is still A LOT of rain.

Depend on one thing, my friend: if you're out of town on Tuesday and Wednesday, the weather will be nice. I've you've got outdoor stuff planned for the weekend, then it'll rain. Simple as that.

Seriously, however, July ande August are *usually* the driest months, but with global warming, climate change, melting icecaps, and reduced sunspot activity, you could also have nuttin' but rain.

[captain_bob]

July - September are the driest. There is supposed to be a lot of construction on I-5 from Olympia to Seattle. You might want to bookmark this page for updates.

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Traffic/trafficalerts/pugetsound.aspx?route=I-5&view=l2ps&action=3

[snarkle]

Got to go with the consensus: July through to the end of September, most recent years. In fact, where we are on the BC coast, we've been having summer droughts followed by out-of-control windstorms in the winter...

[cram]

in seattle it is august - september.

It's my favorite time of the year to be there. hikes in the cascades or olympics are amazing.

I believe I'd ride through the cascades if I were riding, but the ferry ride out of port angeles is a short one and hurricane ridge is right there as well as a few nice areas and lakes to the west of that.

That time if year is a great time to check out the killer whales on boat trips if that's your thing. In august they come through and put on a good show.

There are a few music festivals in seattle around this time.

If you like beer - go to the largest brewer showcase in the states and probably the world - Portland. It's a really fun time.

[Barefoot]

Spend some time in the redwoods....not only in Cali but in the SW corner of Oregon too. Lots spectacular scenic places on the Oregon coast. Plan it out. You should be able to eat like a king on fresh sea food all the way up the coast. Maybe a run east to Crater Lake. Criscross the coast range at various places. Much of it is national forest. Long list of special places.

Up north the ferry system to the San Juans and other islands are fun stuff to do.

Sadly, expect gobs of slow moving California tourists, diesel motor homes to bikes......HWY 101 can move as slow as a funeral procession in the summer.....but that gives you to opportunity to curse in some really pretty places.....

You'll have a great time!

[Armchair Bronco]

While in Seattle, you should also take one of the ferries across the Puget Sound. When I go with my kids, we usually walk on to the Bainbridge Island ferry. It's less than $7 dollars for adults (under $5 for kids), and you only pay when you're *leaving* Seattle. When we arrive at Bainbridge Island (about a 40 minute ride), we get off and then immediately get back in line for the return trip. A round trip is under 2 hours.

Or you can take the ferry to Bremerton for a slightly longer trek.

Be sure to dress with layers; it gets really windy and cold out on the sound, even in the summer.

http://www.campbellsci.com/images/app-ferry.jpg

[smiert spionam]

That is when the best weather is, but there is no 'dry' season, only a less damp season.

Not really.

I grew up in the Northwest, and have lived in the Midwest, Northeast, and Texas. July and August in the NW is by far the driest, and most comfortable, summer. You can get rained on anywhere, anytime -- but mid/late summer is a safe bet.

(Northern California, esp. along the coast, is obviously more fickle).

Check out this rainfall data for Portland (it's a PDF):

http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/pqr/pdxclimate/pg80.pdf

[gearhound17]

Summer will be on a Tuesday this year. :D

[dougk]

June - early September. It probably wont be dry every day, every moment but those are your best odds. I absolutely LOVE the NW during those months.

Course for whatever reason everytime I'm in seattle I drag good weather. Was gorgeous while over the weekend then our flight was delayed in CALIFORNIA for weather LOL.

jeeze.

[cram]

While in Seattle, you should also take one of the ferries across the Puget Sound. When I go with my kids, we usually walk on to the Bainbridge Island ferry. It's less than $7 dollars for adults (under $5 for kids), and you only pay when you're *leaving* Seattle. When we arrive at Bainbridge Island (about a 40 minute ride), we get off and then immediately get back in line for the return trip. A round trip is under 2 hours.



As a motorist - you'll appreciate the best sign on the road: "Drivers with more than 5 autos behind them, must do the speed limit or will be ticketed"

beautiful.
bad tourist.

[Twangmaster]

just wait if you can until early September. Absolutely the best weather of the year. Warm, dry, sunny, and it's like that even on the coast most years. September is the month that makes it worth putting up with the rain from Thanksgiving thru 4th of July. Man, I still miss PDX alot!

[Glowing Tubes]

Some great advice here, thanks for the responses. :beer

[dzo]

Late July to early August with one random week in April just to tease you.

[take1carry1]

I've lived in Nor-Cal for 45 years. The only thing I would like to add is that although it is very unlikely to rain at the coast in July and August the fog will make it feel like it's raining and the wind can be strong and very cold. Remember Mark Twain: "The coldest winter I ever spent was summer in San Francisco". Not really much of an exageration. The best time is late September/early October.