Forecast: Mild Wednesday, Chillier Thursday

As we start our day, temperatures are well above where they were 24 hours ago. There's been a wind from the south/southwest all during the night and this has boosted temperatures. It's interesting that instead of going down, ratings went up throughout the entire night.

The mild weather won't last very long. While we will have highs today in the mid-50s, a cold front during the middle part of the day is going to usher in seasonable air once again.

Cold fronts can contain heavy showers and snow squalls and even thunderstorms but they can also pass through an area quite dry. Today's will be the latter. You may notice a band of clouds crossing the sky as the front moves through and there could be a brief sprinkle, but generally this is a moisture-starved front so it passes through with only a wind shift to the northwest.

Temperatures overnight will fall back down into the 20s and we will start Thursday morning similar to how we started Tuesday morning. Thursday is a bright and sunny day as high pressure keeps clouds and precipitation at bay.

Looking ahead to Friday, a cold front will cross the area and bring a few showers overnight Thursday and into the first couple of hours of Friday before skies become partly sunny again.

Since it's Wednesday it's time to look at the weekend in detail. Right now it's looking dry and seasonably chilly. This is a good weekend to do some final leaf cleanup and also think about putting your driveway stakes in the ground.

At some point over the next 10 to 14 days the ground is going to freeze up and it's always difficult to predict whether it's the permanent freeze or not. Either way it's probably time to get those markers set.

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Wednesday: Sunshine, breezy and milder. There will be a period of clouds for a couple of hours midday. Highs in the 50s.

Wednesday Night: Clear and cold. Lows 21-27.

Thursday: Sunshine followed by evening clouds. Highs in the mid-40s.

Friday: A morning shower; otherwise, becoming partly sunny. Highs approaching 50.

Saturday: Partly to mainly sunny and seasonable. Highs in the mid-40s.

Sunday: Clouds and sunshine. Highs 44-48.