Higher temps to end, frost possible, and peak fall colors arrive

Leaves in all colors are beginning to fall as Mother Nature paints the views across the region. A warm week ahead may bring the first frost of the season this weekend. JIM NOELKER/STAFF

Leaves in all colors are beginning to fall as Mother Nature paints the views across the region. A warm week ahead may bring the first frost of the season this weekend. JIM NOELKER/STAFF

A week that will include above-average temperatures will end with the potential for frost and, potentially, Ohio’s peak time for fall colors.

Tuesday will be sunny with a high in the low 70s, according to the National Weather Service in Wilmington. Overnight, it will be mostly clear with a low about 45 degrees.

More sunny weather is expected Wednesday, and a high of 73 would be about seven degrees above the normal high for this time of year. Overnight Wednesday, clear skies are in the forecast with a low of just 54.

“We have plenty of sunshine in the forecast for leaf peeping later this week and this upcoming weekend,” the NWS said Monday.

The temperatures will drop on Thursday, when a chance of afternoon and evening showers arrives. Thursday’s high will be about 65 degrees and the overnight low will drop into the mid 30s.

Mostly sunny skies return Friday, but the high will reach only 54.

Overnight Friday into Saturday morning, the NWS predicts lows that could reach near 32 degrees, bringing the “potential for frost or freeze conditions.”

Mostly sunny skies are predicted Saturday and Sunday, with highs in the mid to upper 50s.

That weekend weather might make it perfect for hikes or drives to look at fall leaves in southwest Ohio.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources reports the state is near peak fall colors.

The NWS said the weather has played a key role in how vibrant the colors are.

“Because we have had numerous days with sunshine, slightly drier-than-normal conditions, and seasonable temperatures, this year’s fall foliage colors are bound to be even more vibrantly colorful than normal,” the NWS said.