Saturday is the best weather day for leaf peeping around Maine

Time to enjoy the colors of fall

Foliage is near peak or at peak for much of the state. While the warm fall has affected the quality of the leaf color somewhat, the recent morning chill has helped expedite the process.

Given the fact there is wind in the weather forecast to start the work week and areas of rain likely for Sunday, Saturday appears to be the best day to check out Mother Nature in her fall glory.

More of my recent photos of foliage and my recent trip to Moosehead can be found on the Pine Tree Weather Facebook Page.

Forecast Synopsis

Canadian high pressure responsible for the frosty mornings and seasonable temperatures slides southeast on Friday. An intensifying area of low pressure over Hudson Bay brings a weak cold front to the state for Saturday. Low pressure in British Columbia heads to the Great Lakes Saturday, intensifies, and brings rain to the region on Sunday. High pressure with cool temperatures and breezy conditions follows to start the week.

By Friday afternoon, high pressure drifts southeast of Nova Scotia. This will set up a southwest flow. Clouds will be on the increase, and the warmer air aloft will assist in keeping Saturday morning’s temperatures 10° – 20° higher than Friday’s start.

With the front approaching Saturday, there is a chance for some widely scattered shower activity over most of the state Saturday morning into early afternoon. Most of the rainfall appears confined to the mountains and north, and will be light with little to no accumulation. Coastal areas appear to escape, and will enjoy a mainly sunny sky.

The chance for shower activity increases statewide Saturday night into Sunday. The mountains and north have the best chance for some accumulating rainfall, with amounts minimal for the shorelines.

Far northwestern areas appear to accumulate the most rainfall as the low associated with the frontal boundary track west of the St. Lawrence River Valley. Off and on showers can be expected statewide during the day statewide, with steadier rainfall likely for the Allagash region.

By Monday morning, the frontal boundary is predicted to be well offshore of the state. Trailing upper level energy moves through the state during the day, which appears to generate a mix of sun and clouds over the mountains and north, and may bring an isolated sprinkle of shower. With the departing low intensifying near Labrador, north/northwest winds will increase, with gusts in the 20-30 mph range. Given the warm, dry nature of this fall, leaf drop on trees is likely to occur.

The wind settles late Monday. Another Canadian high moves into the northeast, bringing cooler than normal temperatures Tuesday.

The rest of the forecast appears to be mainly dry, with temperatures near normal. A weak front may bring some widely scattered showers Tuesday night into early Wednesday.

7-Day Outlooks

 

-Mike Haggett

For more information between posts, please check out the Pine Tree Weather Facebook page and follow on Twitter for breaking weather alerts & information!

Additional forecast information supplied by Weather.us, the National Weather Service, WeatherBELL Analytics and AccuWeather Professional.

For official forecast information: please check in with National Weather Service Gray for Western & Southern Maine and National Weather Service Caribou for Eastern & Northern Maine.

Always Stay Weather Aware!

Mike Haggett

About Mike Haggett

As a Mainer for nearly five decades, Mike understands all too well the ever changing weather forecasts and surprises given the location and geography of the state. Spending much of his time as child outdoors fishing in all four seasons, keeping track of the weather was a must for personal safety. Living firsthand through the impacts of weather through many types of storms and phenomena, the idea came to mind for him to analyze it closer in 2011.