Weekend Forecast: Beautiful Saturday, then storms arrive Sunday

Weather radar map showing severe thunderstorms moving from Ohio towards the Finger Lakes region for Sunday.
The FLDN Weather Center tracks severe thunderstorms, bringing damaging winds and hail, forecast to impact the Finger Lakes region of New York on Sunday.

I’m keeping a close eye on Sunday’s setup, because what’s shaping up behind this beautiful Saturday could get serious. For now, though, enjoy it — this is about as good as mid-June gets in the Finger Lakes.

This morning is already well into the 70s across the region, with clear skies and a light westerly breeze holding humidity comfortably in check. Afternoons highs will top out near 83° in Geneva and Auburn, with Canandaigua and Watkins Glen nudging closer to 84° to 85°. Winds stay gentle out of the west, around 9 to 12 mph, and that low humidity — dew points in the 50s — keeps it feeling genuinely pleasant rather than muggy. Sunset comes at 8:47 PM, so there’s plenty of evening left to spend outdoors.

Overnight Saturday into Sunday, conditions stay quiet as lows fall to the upper 50s regionwide. No frost concerns.

Then Sunday changes the story. A potent weather system tracking across the eastern Great Lakes will push a cold front through the Finger Lakes Sunday afternoon and evening. Moisture surges ahead of it, and atmospheric instability builds through the afternoon. The National Weather Service has flagged a severe weather risk, with the main threats being strong to damaging winds and large hail. Storms are most likely Sunday afternoon into the evening hours — keep an eye on the sky and have a way to receive warnings.

Behind the front, Monday drops to near 68° under clouds with lingering shower chances, and the pattern stays unsettled through the middle of next week, with additional rain chances Tuesday through Thursday before a gradual improvement by next 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.

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