“April is the cruelest month, breeding lilacs out of the dead land, mixing memory and desire, stirring dull roots with spring rain.” – T.S. Eliot

We had temperatures above 70 on Friday and Saturday, and now there might be snow in the forecast? Ah yes, April can indeed be the cruelest month.

We start the week off on a chilly note with high pressure in control, but with sunshine this morning, temperatures will rise into the 50s this afternoon, which is a few degrees below normal. Clouds will start to stream in this afternoon as low pressure begins to head up the East Coast. We’ll have a period of rain and gusty winds Monday night into Tuesday, but across the interior, especially in the hills from Worcester County into southern New Hampshire, there will likely be some snow, with some accumulations likely. Even at the lower elevations, especially from southern New Hampshire into the Merrimack Valley, we could have some wet snow mix in, but if there’s any accumulation in these areas, it will be very minor and confined to grassy surfaces.

Skies start to clear out Tuesday afternoon as high pressure builds back in, with dry and seasonably cool conditions into Wednesday. We’ll start to warm up again on Thursday ahead of another frontal system, that could bring in a few showers for Thursday night and early Friday. High pressure builds back in for the weekend with mild temperatures for at least Saturday, but Sunday could turn cooler as a backdoor cold front may slide down the coastline.

Monday: Sunny and chilly early, clouds start to filter in and thicken up during the afternoon. High 50-57.

Monday night: Rain developing, mixed with snow across the hills and well inland, breezy. Low 36-43.

Tuesday: Breezy with rain (or snow) ending in the morning, some clearing in the afternoon. High 50-57.

Tuesday night: Becoming mostly clear. Low 34-41.

Wednesday: Mostly sunny and breezy, clouds may start to move back in late in the day. High 51-58.

Thursday: Intervals of clouds and sun, chance for a few showers at night. High 55-62.

Friday: Chance for a shower early, then becoming partly to mostly sunny and milder. High 61-68.

Saturday: Sunshine and a few clouds. High 56-63.

Sunday: A mix of sun and clouds. High 53-60.

With both Opening Day at Fenway and Easter coming up this week, the forecast will be under a bit more scrutiny. As you might expect in mid-April, we’ve got a rather typical springtime pattern coming up this week, which means it’ll be warm, cool, dry, and wet. Let’s try to make some sense of that.

We start off with high pressure building in today, giving us some sunshine and seasonably mild temperatures. Clouds start to stream in tonight ahead of low pressure heading toward southeastern Canada. That system will send a warm front toward the region early Tuesday, with some showers likely Monday night into Tuesday morning. We’ll clear out in the afternoon and turn milder before a cold front moves through during the afternoon with little fanfare. High pressure builds back in for Tuesday night into Wednesday before the next system starts to head toward the region.

The next system will be making headlines across the nation for a few days before it arrives. It’ll produce heavy rain and mountain snow in the Northwest and Northern California, a blizzard in the Northern Plains, and widespread severe weather from the Central and Southern Plains into the Mississippi Valley. None of that is expected here, but we will have some rain, which could be heavy at times on Thursday. Temperatures will be highly dependent on how far north the warm front ahead of the systems gets. South of the front, temperatures could soar into the 70s, while north of the front, it could stay in the 40s and 50s. As the system drags a cold front through late Thursday, the rain will end, and so will any of the warm weather that moves in. High pressure builds in for Friday with drier and a return to seasonable temperatures. For the Red Sox home opener on Friday at Fenway, for now it looks to be partly sunny with temperatures somewhere around 60.

Next weekend presents some question marks. The models all handle the following system differently, not only from model to model, but from run to run. So, we’re looking at another period of rain and cooler temperatures at some point between Saturday and Monday, but we’re not quite sure when. Some models have even hinted at the potential for a little snow in the hills or even southern New Hampshire. So, what you see below represents our best thinking for now, but realize that it will almost certainly change by the time we get to our Weekend Outlook on Thursday. With Sunday being Easter, and next Monday being Patriots Day, a.k.a. Marathon Monday, the forecast is fairly important, so we hope to have a fairly good idea of what to expect by Thursday.

Monday: Mostly sunny, clouds start to move in late in the day. High 55-62.

Monday night: Becoming cloudy with showers developing. Low 39-46.

Tuesday: Showers end early, becoming partly to mostly sunny in the afternoon. High 62-69.

Tuesday night: Clear to partly cloudy. Low 39-46.

Wednesday: Morning sun, increasing afternoon clouds, showers develop at night. High 60-67.

Thursday: Mostly cloudy with occasional rain and showers. High 62-69, potentially even warmer south of the Mass Pike, but potentially much cooler from the North Shore to the New Hampshire Seacoast.

Friday: Partly sunny. High 60-67.

Saturday: A mix of sun and clouds, breezy, chance for showers. High 60-67.

Sunday: Intervals of clouds and sun, breezy, showers possible. High 52-59.

Better enjoy today, because much of the upcoming week isn’t looking that nice.

High pressure builds in today with some sunshine and seasonably mild temperatures, but that will be enough to make this the best day of the week. Tuesday might not be that bad either, with some sunshine in the morning, but clouds will start to move in during the afternoon ahead of a low pressure system heading toward the Mid-Atlantic states. That system will pass south of the region Tuesday night into Wednesday with rain likely. Wednesday just looks like a cool, damp day, not that unusual for early April. Temperatures may be marginally cold enough for some wet snow across central and possibly southern New Hampshire, but any accumulation would likely be confined to grassy surfaces, and mainly before daybreak Wednesday. Again, this is not that unusual for early April.

That system will pull away later on Wednesday, but another one quickly follows for Thursday into Friday. This one will bring another round of rain in, and it could be heavy once again. In fact, Thursday looks like a washout at this point. The Red Sox are scheduled to open the season at Yankee Stadium at 1pm Thursday, and the odds of that game happening look pretty slim at this point. Expect it to be bumped to Friday afternoon.

That system will pull away late Friday, but an upper-level low moves into the Northeast for the weekend, keeping plenty of clouds around, with a few showers possible each afternoon. We also have to keep an eye on a storm system offshore, but right now, it looks to be too far offshore to have any impact, expected possibly bringing some showers to the Outer Cape.

Monday: A mix of sun and clouds. High 49-56.

Monday night: Partly cloudy. Low 30-37.

Tuesday: Morning sunshine, increasing afternoon clouds. Showers may develop near the South Coast late in the day. High 54-61.

Tuesday night: Cloudy with showers likely, possibly mixed with wet snow across central New Hampshire. Low 36-43.

Wednesday: Periods of rain and showers, tapering off by evening. High 44-51.

Thursday: Rain likely. High 47-54.

Friday: Plenty of clouds with more showers, possibly some afternoon sunny breaks. High 59-66.

Saturday: A mix of sun and clouds, chance for a shower. High 56-63.

Sunday: More clouds than sun, a shower or two possible. High 51-58.

Finally, we’ll mention that the models are showing the potential for a significant warmup next week. While we wouldn’t be surprised if there’s at least one very warm day in there, we’re skeptical that an extended warmup is on the way. For one, the water is still very cold, leaving us susceptible to seabreezes or even back-door cold fronts that will bring in much cooler air off the Atlantic. Also, if the upper-level ridge sets up a bit too far to the west, we stay on the cooler side of things. As we said, some of the models show a significant warmup, but beyond a day or two in the middle of next week, they haven’t been consistent is showing it lasting into the end of the week or beyond. We’ll obviously delve more into this next weekend.

No, Mother Nature is not playing an early April Fool’s joke on us, today really will be quite chilly.

The week starts out on a very chilly note as an upper-level low pressure system slowly moves across the Northeast. We’ll have some sunny breaks today but there will be plenty of clouds and possibly a few snow showers or flurries during the afternoon and evening. Temperatures will be well below normal for late March, with highs only in the 30s, possibly upper 20s in some spots. This will likely break records for the lowest high temperature for the date across much of the Northeast. Add in gusty winds, and wind chills will only be in the teens (or colder), so bundle up if you’re heading outside today. Skies will clear out tonight as high pressure builds in, resulting in a rather cold night, possibly setting low temperature records in spots, as lows drop into the teens in many locations.

High pressure starts to slide off to the east on Tuesday, allowing temperatures to begin to moderate, but it will remain on the chilly side. Wednesday should be milder, but clouds will start to stream into the region as a complex low pressure system heads into the Great Lakes. That system will send a warm front toward the region on Thursday. Ahead of the warm front, we could see a little snow or sleet Wednesday night, especially across the interior. Milder air should eventually move in for Thursday as the warm front finally pushes through, but rain showers are likely Thursday night into early Friday before the storm sends a cold front across the region. How quickly that warm front moves through on Thursday will determine our temperatures. Some of the guidance is showing the potential for temperatures well into the 60s, but some of the models don’t bring the warmer air into the Merrimack Valley or southern New Hampshire until late afternoon or evening, resulting in a much cooler day. Steady rain ends early Friday, but some showers could linger during the day. Next weekend looks dry and cooler as high pressure builds back in.

Monday: Intervals of clouds and sunshine, blustery, chance for a few snow showers or flurries. High 27-34.

Monday night: Becoming clear to partly cloudy, breezy, and cold. Low 14-21.

Tuesday: Morning sun, afternoon clouds, still breezy. High 34-41.

Tuesday night: Mostly clear. Low 19-26.

Wednesday: Early sun, then clouds increase and thicken. A few showers possible at night, maybe mixed with sleet or snow across the interior. High 42-49.

Thursday: Cloudy and breezy with showers likely. High 55-62, possibly a little cooler across southern New Hampshire.

Friday: More clouds than sunshine, breezy, chance for a few more showers. High 56-63.

Saturday: Partly sunny, breezy, and cooler. High 46-53.

Sunday: A mix of sun and clouds. High 50-57.

Now that Spring has officially arrived, cooler weather will return.

The week starts off with high pressure building into eastern Canada, providing us with sunshine and seasonably cool conditions for today and Tuesday. By Wednesday, that high will start to slide eastward as low pressure heads toward the Great Lakes, sending some clouds our way. Precipitation looks to spread in Wednesday night, and there may be enough cold air in place that allows it to start as some snow or a wintry mix, at least across the interior. Everything should go over to plain rain on Thursday, and some of it could be heavy as a secondary area of low pressure develops nearby and moves right across the region. Rain ends early Friday as that low pulls away, but with another upper-level low pressure area slowly moving in, we’ll start have a decent amount of cloud cover along with the threat of some pop-up showers Friday afternoon. For the weekend, that upper-level low will cross the Northeast, and a new area of low pressure will develop at the surface near the Mid-Atlantic coast. While the surface low may be too far offshore to have much impact, it may interact with the upper-level low to produce some additional rain or snow showers next weekend.

Monday: Sunshine and a few afternoon clouds, breezy. High 47-54.

Monday night: Clear to partly cloudy. Low 29-36.

Tuesday: Partly to mostly sunny and breezy. High 43-50.

Tuesday night: Clear to partly cloudy. Low 25-32.

Wednesday: Some sun in the morning, then clouds move in during the afternoon with rain or snow showers developing in the evening. High 41-48.

Thursday: Cloudy with rain likely, possibly some wintry mix across the interior during the early morning. High 42-49.

Friday: Rain ends early, otherwise plenty of clouds and a few sunny breaks, slight chance for an afternoon shower. High 52-59.

Saturday: More clouds than sunshine with a rain or snow shower possible. High 47-54.

Sunday: Partly to mostly cloudy with a chance for a few rain or snow shower. High 45-52.