Two Rounds of Rain then Cooler Temps
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! Not to be too cliche but we want to say how grateful we are for all of our fellow weather nerds across the region and to our readers that keep LYW going. The rest of the day features sunshine and Friday continues this dry pattern, with clouds developing closer to sunset and showers developing overnight into Saturday. Widespread showers move across the region Saturday, pushing out before sunset with possible breaks in the cloud cover. Sunday offers up a mixed bag of clouds and sun, with the second round of rain moving through overnight into Monday and with temps crashing on the back end, light snow is likely for the TN line before sunrise. The rest of next week looks dry yet chilly as temps hold to the upper 40's across most of the region. With the above in mind, tomorrow is the best day for traveling, while Saturday looks to be a washout, especially for those living along the southern most points of SW NC (Highlands, Cashiers, Lake Toxaway).
Temps Friday push into the low - upper 40's with sunshine to start the day, clouds developing slowly past midday and winds picking up out of the south and west. Stronger winds push into the region around sunset with gust up to 40mph for the ridgelines, while most of the region experiences 10 - 20mph wind speeds. Showers develop shortly after sunset and continue in an on and off fashion throughout the night, peaking in coverage mid morning Saturday; overnight lows for most of SW NC dip into the upper 30's. Widespread shower coverage develops closer to sunrise on Saturday and coverage winds down out of the southwest by the early - mid afternoon hours. Rainfall totals will vary based on location, with up to 2 - 3" for the escarpment area and 1 - 2" for those closer to the TN line. Temps Saturday only reach the mid 40's - low 50's depending upon elevation and cool down to the low - upper 30's Saturday night as clouds clear the region.
Sunday into Monday will feature our next round of rain, however the front should take till the late afternoon - mid evening hours to arrive, pushing showers across the region shortly before midnight. Temps Sunday reach the upper 40's - low 60's depending upon elevation but fall to the upper 20's along the ridgelines closer to sunrise, while the valleys only settle into the upper 30's. This quick drop in temps, coupled with lingering isolated showers along the TN line will allow light snow to fall during the pre dawn hours Monday; accumulations under an inch.
Isolated showers remain a possibility before midday Monday and clouds should clear out before sunset, setting up the rest of the week with dry yet chilly weather. Temps Monday push into the low 40's - low 50's but only reach mid 30's along the ridgelines Tuesday and Wednesday, while the lower elevations each the upper 40's; all under sunny skies. This should allow Cataloochee Ski Area to make snow continuously from late Monday afternoon into the latter part of next.
We'll put out another forecast discussion Saturday morning to discuss the incoming rainfall and second round of rain Sunday night into Monday morning. Safe travels!