This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Ma Nature's weekend Wasatch Front sojourn is a lot like politics: on Saturday, she was all wet, and come Sunday, she will be a blowhard.
While cynicism dripped from the campaign clouds elsewhere, northern Utah's forecast on Saturday called for isolated rain showers and thunderstorms with highs in the low-60s. And Sunday? Maybe we do need a wall, and a really high one — but to keep winds of 40-50 mph, gusting to 70 mph, from buffeting the valleys.
Strong easterly downslope winds are expected across the Wasatch Front beginning Saturday night and blowing right through Sunday afternoon. High-profile vehicles will have an especially tough time with crosswinds along exposed stretches of highways in Cache Valley.
In the Salt Lake and Tooele valleys, those winds will be only slightly less tumultuous than debates over the influence of Wall Street on the White House, unsecured government emails, delegate theft, public restroom use, or who loves God more. The region looked for winds of 10-20 mph Sunday morning that will build to 30-40 in the afternoon, with gusts of 55 mph. So, better tie down the lawn furniture and trampolines.
Highs on Sunday will be in the mid-60s in the Salt Lake-Tooele area, up a few degrees from Saturday. At least, forecasters say, the region will escape the rains of Saturday.
Southern Utahns traded warmer temperatures — in the mid-60s Saturday and low-70s on Sunday — for winds around 20 mph and a cycle of rain showers and thunderstorms throughout the weekend.
The Utah Division of Air Quality listed Salt Lake, Carbon and Washington counties as "yellow," or compromised for air quality, though the wind and rain could alleviate that some through the weekend and into Monday. The remainder of the state enjoyed "green," or healthy air quality.
The Intermountain Allergy & Asthma website reported that mulberry pollen was "very high" as of Saturday, with sycamore and oak at "high" levels and mold "moderate."
For more extensive forecast information, visit The Salt Lake Tribune's weather page at: http//www.sltrib.com/weather/.
Twitter: @remims