Chilly Friday; Frost Sat & Sun Mornings
Good afternoon folks! The front has crossed the region as of Tuesday early afternoon and temps are dropping while rainfall continues, eventually fizzling out later on this evening. While the event is still six plus hours from ending, rainfall totals are falling in line with our forecast of 1" for most of SW NC and 1 - 2" along the escarpment. Rosman in particular is putting on a show with 4" from Monday morning into Tuesday afternoon and Highlands has picked up an inch but still sits at the 7th spot all time (127 years of record) with 107.54" on the year; 93 days remain. We'll enjoy NW flow tomorrow (Wednesday) that brings us clearing skies with some strong winds above 5000', but for the most part it will be a pleasant day. Temps warm slightly on Thursday with the passage of a dry front but they'll noticeably drop overnight into Friday, setting up a chilly end to the work and school week with temps 8 - 10 degrees below normal for early October! Friday night in particular is shaping up to be our coldest night of the week, however frost is possible both Friday and Saturday night across the region, patchy below 3000' and widespread above 4500'. Lastly, if you haven't noticed the gorgeous new color leaf map produced by Appalachian Maps we want to make sure you are aware of this wonderful tool to plan around the peak color dates for our region.
Wednesday through Sunday will be sunny, with a few clouds possible Wednesday morning and Thursday evening along the TN line, but nothing to fret over as dry conditions hold firm for the next five days. Temps will warm to the upper 60's Wednesday and low 70's Thursday across the lower elevations, while the ridgelines stay cool in the mid and upper 50's respectively. Westerly winds around 20mph will be present Wednesday afternoon and gust could reach up to 35 - 45mph, but nothing to stop you from enjoying the Parkway or any other high elevation site, just dress for a breezy, cooler day. Overnight lows settle into the low - upper 40's Wednesday night across the region and dip to the upper 30's - low 40's Thursday night, both nights under clear skies.
The real cooldown takes place Friday with highs only making it to the low 60's across the valleys and upper 40's above 5000'! Overnight lows plummet to the low - upper 30's across the region, prompting frost to form and as of this afternoon it seems the valleys may sneak out with a patchy frost but we recommend preparing your late season plants regardless.
Saturday and Sunday keep the chilly weather around with highs in the mid - upper 60's for the lower elevations, only reaching the low - mid 50's along the ridgelines. Frost is likely again Saturday night but looks to hold off for Sunday night as we slowly return to normal levels.
We'll stop here and circle back on Thursday with a better look at the frost potential for the region. Enjoy the break from the rain!