"William_F" wrote in message
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[...]
Can someone set me straight on what this data is supposed to mean?

To understand, you should probably look at two things: the raw data, and the
NWS explanation of the raw data.

All that the web site you're looking at does is map the NWS raw data to
plain English, essentially by just using the tables the NWS provides in the
first place.

You can find the raw data by clicking on the links near the bottom of the
pages you provided. The key for that data can be found he
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/mdl/synop/mavcard.htm

As far as your specific questions go:

First, it's important to understand that the forecast beyond about 6 hours
or so is extremely unreliable, especially with respect to cloud coverage and
heights.

Second, clouds can and often do come in layers. A cloud base of "3000-6500
feet" does not preclude the possibility of clouds above that height. Note
also that the range is quite wide; the reason being that there's a very wide
range of uncertainty in the forecast. They aren't saying that the bases
will actually range from 3000 to 6500 feet on that day; they are saying that
the bases, which will generally be relatively uniform, will be at a height
that is somewhere in or near that range.

Likewise, the "12000' to Unlimited" describes a potential range of
conditions. They are basically saying there won't be conditions favorable
for low clouds, but that there may be middle-altitude or higher clouds, or
there may be no clouds at all.

So, during a time period for which clear skies are predicted, the
"Unlimited" (which is really just a misleading transcription of the NWS term
"unlimited ceiling") is the more likely condition to prevail. On the other
hand, on a day when cloudy skies are predicted, the "12000'" (with the
implied "or higher") is the more likely condition to prevail.

So, if you want to know whether you'll see the sun, look at the "Sky"
category. If the "Sky" category indicates clouds, you can learn more detail
about the predicted lowest cloud heights in the "Cloud Base" category (but
it won't tell you how high the clouds are likely to go).

A forecast for low clouds could mean you'd be above the clouds on your
climb, or it could mean clouds extend all the way from below your climb to
well above it. There are other aspects to interpreting weather forecast
information that would give you more detail with respect to the extent of
the clouds, but the data you're referencing right now won't provide that.

As pilots, especially those flying recreationally, are painfully aware, any
forecast a day or more in the future is not to be relied upon. It gives you
a vague sense of what the most likely weather conditions may be, but that
forecast is almost never exactly correct. Even large scale questions like
"will there be rain?" or "will it be sunny?" can be wrong either in terms of
degree or time of occurrence, and fine details like temperature, wind speed,
cloud bases, and the like are almost impossible to predict with any accuracy
that far in advance.

For your purposes, I think the most useful information is "sunny or cloudy"
and "low clouds or high clouds". Looking for more detail than that from
these forecasts is likely to simply lead to disappointment.

Pete