A quiet, pleasant Friday is on tap for the Finger Lakes, with morning clouds giving way to a nice mid-May afternoon. Temperatures are starting in the low-to-mid 40s across the region — Corning and Bath sitting at 43°, Canandaigua and Watkins Glen near 47° — under mostly overcast skies. No alerts are in effect.
Clouds should thin through the morning hours as high pressure holds firm, and by early afternoon expect mostly sunny to partly cloudy conditions with highs reaching the mid-60s. Canandaigua, Penn Yan, and Bath top out near 65°, while Corning and Watkins Glen push toward 66–67°. A light westerly breeze of 6–9 mph keeps things comfortable. Tonight turns quiet and cool, with lows dropping to the low-to-mid 40s.
Enjoy today — Saturday is a different story. A mid-level shortwave and an advancing warm front will push into the region Saturday afternoon, bringing scattered showers and a few thunderstorms, particularly south of Lake Ontario where instability will be most favorable. The NWS Buffalo office is also flagging wind gusts of 30–35 mph Saturday afternoon through evening. Severe weather potential is low, but it’s worth keeping an eye on if you have outdoor plans.
The bigger headline, though, is what follows: a substantial warming trend takes hold Sunday and accelerates into early next week, with summer-like temperatures likely by Monday and Tuesday. After Saturday’s unsettled stretch, the rest of the weekend and early week look increasingly warm and dry.
Stream flows across the region are running at normal to moderately elevated seasonal levels, with the Seneca River near Seneca Falls at 2,120 cfs — nothing of concern, but worth noting for anyone paddling this weekend.
Weather Center forecast for the Finger Lakes region. Sourced from NWS, Open-Meteo, NWS Area Forecast Discussion, and USGS stream-flow data. Updated 6 AM, noon, and 6 PM ET.