Outrunning the Pineapple Express

All the way down the coast for the past two days we've been racing against the Pineapple Express.  This is the name given to a weather system that blows in from the pacific in the winter.  The winds come from the south (maybe even Hawaii) and they're quite warm--hence the pineapple reference.  With them these winds bring wave after wave of pelting rain.  Sometimes the clouds are so dark it feels like dusk...

Then things break for a few minutes and the sun shines through.  But only for a short time--soon enough another wave of rain sweeps through. We've been heading into this system for two days and only tonight at Grants Pass in Southern Oregon have we moved beyond it. 

This may be only a temporary respite though as the system appears to be expanding.  One thing is good about this--it's unlikely that we'll encounter snow in the mountain passes. 

Tomorrow we'll head into California.  We're trying to decide whether to take I-5 or 101.  Depends on the weather tomorrow.