One thing you are always guaranteed to run into when exploring our region is the weather. While we have come a long way from simply looking at the sky to try to predict the weather, there is still a lot you can tell from a quick glance up at the clouds.
Clouds are the harbingers of all manner of weather conditions. They can be roughly categorized into four main names based on their formation and function; cirrus, cumulus, stratus, and nimbus. While there are far more than these four simple groups, properly identifying a cloud type usually involves a combination of two or more of these names to describe the shape and purpose.
The shape and type of land can contribute to weather formation. While this region lacks truly massive mountains that drive entire climates like the Cascades in the northwest or the Andes in South America, our ridges trap low-level moisture and can often create updrafts that stretch thousands of feet into the air. We can also experience an effect known as a temperature inversion where a layer of warm air sits on top of cold air trapped in the valley. This is mostly visible in the winter and can be seen when a low-level layer of clouds or pollution sits it the air with a hard line at its upper limit.
