Seattle rolled out of bed to a blanket of dense fog Thursday morning, with low-lying neighborhoods and river valleys seeing visibility sink to about a quarter mile in spots. The National Weather Service has a Dense Fog Advisory running through 9 a.m., so commuters should expect slower-than-usual traffic and plan on a little extra patience on the roads. Temperatures are mild, mostly in the low to mid 40s, and skies are expected to clear into a sunny afternoon with highs in the upper 50s. This is shaping up as the driest day of the week, with a wetter weekend on the way.
Fog And The Morning Commute
The thickest fog is pooling in river valleys and interior neighborhoods this morning, where very low visibility can make early drives disorienting and increase stopping distances. If you have to head out, stick with low-beam headlights, ease off the gas, and leave extra room between vehicles, since fog can hide stalled cars and blur lane markings. The Dense Fog Advisory covers much of the Puget Sound lowlands and stays in effect until 9 a.m., according to NWS Seattle.
Sunny Afternoon, Wet Weekend Ahead
By afternoon, clouds should peel back and allow sunshine to bump temperatures into the upper 50s, with a similarly mild setup likely Friday before the pattern flips. A frontal system is expected to move in late Friday night into Saturday, and rain is likely Saturday with new totals of roughly a quarter to a half inch across the lowlands. Forecasters note that heavier weekend precipitation could nudge the Skokomish River near minor flood stage and will drop snow levels to around 3,000 to 4,000 feet early next week; see the full forecast discussion for details from the National Weather Service.
Plan Ahead
Treat the morning commute like a slow-motion version of your usual drive: headlights on, speed down, and a little extra time built into the schedule. Mariners and anyone with outdoor plans from late Friday into the weekend should keep an eye on updated forecasts and have rain gear ready, as rivers and mountain passes may see some travel impacts once the cooler, wetter pattern returns.
