LA GRANDE â The air quality in the smoky Grande Ronde and Wallowa valleys is expected to generally improve over the next four days because of a projected wind shift. âWe are expecting westerly winds which will push the smoke away from Oregon,â said Cole Evans, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Pendleton. Evans said the winds will âkick into gearââ on Thursday, July 22, and continue through most of the weekend. The winds blowing west to east will be a switch from the southwesterly winds Northeastern Oregon has been receiving. Those winds have brought with them smoke from the Bootleg Fire in Southwestern Oregon.