No Travels Issues for Thanksgiving
Good Afternoon Folks! It's Tuesday and the sun is shining for most of us with clear skies expected tonight, allowing temps to dip below freezing region wide. Sunshine sits overhead Wednesday and Thursday, however clouds return Friday with showers developing Friday night and lingering through most of the day Saturday. A break in the action occurs Sunday morning but another round of rain quickly fills in by the late afternoon hours, ending sometime Monday. We titled today's discussion assuming everyone is traveling somewhere nearby, but for those driving to the northwest portion of the state (Boone) down to the escarpment (Morganton), be sure to double check the forecast for Friday night as freezing rain is a possibility and although amounts may be light, any ice on the roads is enough to adjust travel plans. Temps Wednesday and Thursday look to be somewhat seasonal, cooling down to below average levels Friday and rebounding this weekend due to strong southerly flow.
Wednesday and Thursday provide us with ample sunshine and temps pushing into the low- mid 50's Wednesday, rising to the mid - upper 50's Thursday for the lower elevations; ridgelines only reach the low - mid 40's both days. Overnight lows settle into the upper 20's each night for the valleys, while the ridgelines dip into the low 30's due to radiational cooling.
Sunshine starts the day Friday but clouds quickly fill in and cap temps to the upper 40's - low 50's for the lower elevations, with showers arriving sometime after dark. The expansion of showers will occur early Saturday morning to encompass the entire region, winding down slowly as the afternoon moves along. An inch of rain is likely for all of SW NC late Friday into Saturday afternoon, however higher totals are possible along the SC state line due to upslope enhancement as the system passes by to our southeast. Temps Saturday will warm up to the mid - upper 50's for the valleys due to strong southerly flow, with overnight lows both nights dipping into the upper 30's - low 40's.
Sunday into Monday of next week keeps passing clouds overhead with spotty light showers and temps respond, only pushing into the upper 40's - low 50's Sunday and cooling down even further to the mid - upper 40's by Monday. We'll go into more detail on this event sometime Thursday morning.