Heyden Ski Hill & Resort snow report

015 FXUS63 KAPX 050641 AFDAPX Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Gaylord MI 241 AM EDT Sun Jul 5 2026 .KEY MESSAGES... - Rogue sprinkles/shower today? Otherwise, less humid and generally pleasant today/Monday - Rain/storm chances return for midweek (as early as Tuesday?)...excessive rainfall is possible && .DISCUSSION... Issued at 239 AM EDT Sun Jul 5 2026 PATTERN SYNOPSIS/FORECAST: Omega pattern over Canada beginning to shift eastward...with 100kt upper jet feeding energy across SW Canada...and upper low shifting toward the NW Territories to bump ridging eastward. Meanwhile...across the CONUS...ridging building over the western US while what is left of the heat dome tries to hang on over the SE US...with some messy shortwave troughing effectively trapped in between these features over the Upper Midwest (and snaking back into the south/central Plains a bit, too). Bulk of the convection now hangs out across the Plains where there is better instability closer to the Gulf tap; some activity continues along the shortwave axis over the Upper MS Valley and in the OH Valley along the perimeter of the ridge, where pwats are still around or above 1.5in. Confluence and much drier air noted to our northeast over Ontario (Tds up here in the upper 30s to lower 40s at 0z). We remain relatively col-y in the mid and upper levels here in the Great Lakes, with weak westerly flow aloft...with low-level flow much more easterly, helping (slowly) advect this air mass closer to the region. We are cooler and largely drier than we have been most of the week, especially north and east...with a high-bridged stationary boundary generally outlining the deeper moisture south and west of a line from Saskatchewan to IA to Port Huron and eastward toward Boston. Westerly jet over the US/Canadian border upstream will ultimately help shunt at least most of the nebulous wad of PV over the Upper Midwest eastward into the start of the work week (some of it may end up cut off over the Mid MS Valley)...with sharp, positively-tilted ridge axis sliding into the Upper Midwest in its wake...and ahead of more potent bit of energy crossing central Canada. Overall, expect high pressure and quieter weather to prevail, especially as we do trend cooler and drier overall, but can`t rule out some rogue daytime pop-up showers at times today with slightly cooler 500mb temps aloft...and perhaps into the start of the work week as well. Subtle height falls drift into the Upper Midwest/Great Lakes by midweek...bringing a chance for some additional showers and storms. This idea could hang out through the latter half of the week, though it is unclear attm how things progress. Signals point toward troughing over western Canada and northeastern Canada...but it is unclear if ridge axis will be able to rebuild in between these two features over north central Canada...or if it will end up marred by energy trying to plow across the Prairie Provinces (not all that dissimilar of an idea to what is currently happening over the Midwest, but positioned slightly westward). Attm, there are signals for troughing to try to retake the Upper Great Lakes late in the week into the weekend, though we may also be close enough to the downstream side of the ridge axis for high pressure to prevail. Overall...would expect a summer-like week ahead, though with less humidity than this past week. FORECAST DETAILS... Rogue sprinkles/showers today?...With temperatures cooling in the low levels a bit quicker than in the mid-levels, some drying, and not a ton of forcing to work with, think we will largely stay dry today. If anything were to pop, think there is a low chance early in the day with some potential upper divergence to work with ahead of the PV max and perhaps some influences from any upstream convective activity to come into play. Otherwise, watch that lake breeze in the afternoon, especially near and west of US-131 where prevailing easterly flow would lead to the greatest lake breeze convergence today. There is a slightly better chance at things staying more moist and warm over here, too...unless we end up a little more overcast with leftover convective clouds floating in. Think Monday will be quiet, and Tuesday should be as well...though not impossible some warm advection precip could develop toward the Yoop, even as early as Tuesday morning; best instability development should be up toward the Yoop as well on Tuesday afternoon as we get a little warmer and a little more moist beneath that ridge axis. Lower Humidities/Drying Trends ahead Overall...Do expect drier air overall to ooze in from the northeast through the first part of the week with light to east/northeast flow. If drying is more aggressive, dewpoints could drop into the 40s which could open the door for afternoon minRHs in the 25-30 percent range (for fire weather concerns). However...do wonder if the recent rainfall will at least initially slow the drying trend. Think the moist soils will also keep overnight lows from plummeting quite as much as otherwise possible tonight and Monday night (more aggressive drying could allow for localized lows in the 40s)...and could open the door for radiational fog in this weak-flow pattern. This also suggests low temperatures will be a little cooler through much of the period (closer to normal for early July, which is the mid 50s), which should be much better for sleeping. Threat for Heavy/Excessive Rain Returns toward Midweek...tongue of warm/moist air sticking up into the eastern U.P. should allow for an east-west boundary to develop up that way, which could be slow to move through the region through the remainder of the week; will have to see. In any case...this lends concerns for not only setting off convection in the area, but could also serve as a focus for deeper moisture and increase potential for multiple rounds of rain/heavy rain (whether they develop in our region or track in from upstream) - - something we don`t necessarily need, given current hydro sensitivities across parts of the area attm. Additionally, do wonder if the boundary will give any upstream convection something to track along; with it being focused more north, think this would give us a better shot (in theory) of upstream convection tracking in at times, perhaps starting as early as Tuesday night. && .AVIATION /00Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z MONDAY/... Issued at 1148 PM EDT Sat Jul 4 2026 A few patches of stratus/fog will be possible tonight, though higher clouds in some areas will be an obstacle to that. Some locally HZ due to fireworks displays is also a possibility. Best chance for fog is likely at fog-prone MBL, and do have some restrictions in the TEMPO group there. Otherwise quiet, with less in the way of shower chances Sunday. Light winds, getting a little breezier from the n to ne late Sunday. && .APX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... MI...None. MARINE...None. && $$ DISCUSSION...FEF AVIATION...JZ