Drying, brightening in time for the weekend

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KJCT) - Showers have been few today, and those that have formed have mainly stayed over the higher terrain. There is some potential this evening for a few showers in the valleys. It’s likely that more of us will stay dry.

The scattered showers and thunderstorms are coming to an end. Rain has been around, but many of us haven’t seen a single drop of rain this week.

Rain Ends for Most of Western Colorado By Morning

A cold front extends from southern South Dakota to northwestern Nebraska to northeastern Colorado to central Colorado. The tail of that cold front is slow moving and right over us this evening. The slow-moving cold front will slowly drift southward tonight, shutting down the rain before midnight around Grand Junction and Delta. South of the cold front, showers are possible from Montrose and Nucla to Dove Creek and Cortez through the Friday morning drive. More snow can fall in the San Juans above about 10,000 feet and especially on the 13ers and 14ers.

Rain Ends for the Rest of Western Colorado By Evening

The cold front will shift far enough south to shut down the rain all the way to the New Mexico state line by about 2-4 PM at the latest. Clouds will thin and break up, and the sun will start to peek through by Friday afternoon to start brightening the sky. The rain is gone in time for high school football on Friday evening.

Brighter This Weekend

This weekend looks stellar with abundant sunshine. Temperatures become the focus of our forecast. Highs will range from low-to-mid 80s this weekend around Grand Junction. Mornings will be in the low-to-mid 50s. Montrose will reach highs in the mid-70s to near 80 with morning lows in the mid-to-upper 40s this weekend.

Friday At The Bus Stop

So at the bus stop on Friday, expect clouds in the morning with temperatures in the 50s. Some showers are possible in our southern areas from Montrose and Nucla to Cortez. The ridge home will be partly cloudy with temperatures in the 70s.

Our Next 24 Hours

This evening will be mostly cloudy with a chance for a shower or thunderstorm. Most areas will stay dry. We’ll cool from mid-70s around6 PM to upper 60s around 8 PM to mid-60s at 10 PM. The rest of tonight will be mostly cloudy with spotty showers south of the Grand Valley - mainly from Montrose to Cortez. Low temperatures by morning will be near 54 degrees around Grand Junction, 49 degrees around Montrose, 51 degrees around Delta, and 45 degrees around Cortez. Friday will start cloudy with a few showers south of the Grand Valley, especially around Montrose, Nucla, Dove Creek, and Cortez. Increasing sun will bright the sky after noon. High temperatures will be near 77 degrees around Grand Junction, 70 degrees around Montrose, 76 degrees around Delta, and 73 degrees around Cortez.

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