Rain this evening as front knocks back temperatures tomorrow

finger lakes weather forecast thursday march 14 2024 sun clouds front rain
Temperatures will push into the 60s again this afternoon, but will struggle to reach degrees tomorrow. Highs early next week will be in the 30s. [Photo by Gwen Moshier]

Cold Front

Another warm day is ahead today, but a frontal boundary tonight will bring rain and then cooler temperatures to the area.

The daytime hours are generally expected to be dry and there may even be quite a bit of sunshine through the morning and early afternoon. There will be some clouds mixing in at this time, but the skies shouldn’t turn fully overcast until later in the afternoon.

The frontal boundary will be nearby or overhead today, but in a weak, disorganized state. Winds will be nearly calm as a result, however.

Temperatures in general will be a couple of degrees cooler than yesterday. Widespread low and mid 60s are still expected, and the valley locations of the Southern Tier could again flirt with 70 degrees.

Low pressure riding along the front will approach this evening, bringing rain showers into the area as the sun sets. The rain will move in from west to east, first arriving in the I-390 corridor somewhere around 6 PM and reaching the I-81 corridor by 9 PM.

The rain will become fairly widespread this evening, and there could even be a couple of rumbles of thunder and localized downpours. This will be most likely across the southern half of the region, but most areas will not hear any thunder.

The bulk of the rain will move east shortly after midnight, though batches of lighter, less widespread showers will continue into early Friday morning. A few areas of fog and drizzle may linger as late as the noontime hour.

The afternoon will remain dry, but cloudy, with just a few breaks in the clouds possible before the sun sets.

Temperatures will spend the evening mainly in the low 50s. A slow drop overnight will have most places in the low and mid 40s by Friday morning. Friday afternoon highs will be around 50 degrees, though higher elevations will be in the mid 40s.

finger lakes weather 7-day forecast thu mar 14 | thur, sun & clouds evening rain low 60 | fri, mostly cloudy near 50 | sat, sun and clouds low 50 | sun, cloud a few showers mid 40 | mon, mostly cloudy upper 30 | tues, a few am flurries mid 30 | wed, rain and snow showers near 40
This graphic represents an average over the entire Finger Lakes region. Localized variations should be expected. Click to enlarge.

Weekend, Next Week’s Weather

A weak, secondary frontal boundary will slide through Friday night, possibly bringing a few stray showers to the area. Clouds should break up after this moves through, leading to a mix of sun and clouds for Saturday.

Temperatures will drop to the mid 30 Friday night but will rebound with highs in the low 50s Saturday afternoon as winds turn lightly to the southwest.

The next front will begin to approach Saturday night with some showers moving in after midnight. The best chance for rain will come Sunday morning with a few showers lingering into the afternoon.

With the front passing through during the morning, there will not be much time for warming to take place. Morning lows will be in the upper 30s and afternoon highs will mostly be in the low and mid 40s.

Temperatures will drop below freezing Sunday night with lows in the upper 20s. Monday will top out with highs in the mid and upper 30s.

The Great Lakes will be producing some limited lake effect snow Sunday night and Monday, but winds look poorly aligned for the snow to make it into the Finger Lakes. There will probably be some stray flurries around, but no accumulation is expected.

Winds will become a bit more northwesterly on Tuesday, bringing some of those snow showers into the area during the morning before winds shift and the snow dissipates. Tuesday will be the coolest upcoming day, with lows in the mid 20s and highs in the mid 30s.

A new system will pass through on Wednesday with a mix of rain and snow showers. Highs may manage to reach 40 degrees.

The weather remains uncertain late next week into the following week. Temperatures should stick to the 30s or 40s through next weekend but may try to rise a little for the following week. All in all, the second half of March looks to have cooler temperatures than the first half.

As always, though, there will be spikes and dips as the changeable springtime weather patterns come and go.

More Information:

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finger lakes weather 7-day forecast thu mar 14 | thur, sun & clouds evening rain low 60 | fri, mostly cloudy near 50 | sat, sun and clouds low 50 | sun, cloud a few showers mid 40 | mon, mostly cloudy upper 30 | tues, a few am flurries mid 30 | wed, rain and snow showers near 40
This graphic represents an average over the entire Finger Lakes region. Localized variations should be expected.

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Follow Meteorologist Drew Montreuil:
Meteorologist Drew Montreuil has been forecasting the weather in the Finger Lakes region since 2006 and has degrees in meteorology from SUNY Oswego (B.S. with Honors) and Cornell (M.S.). Drew and his wife have four young boys. When not working or playing with the boys, he is probably out for a run through the countryside.