Summer returns for an encore

The first full week of autumn is feeling more like summer with highs in the upper 70s to 80 degrees and lows in the 50s. National Weather Service forecasters are calling for a high of 79 in downtown Spokane today and 80 in Coeur d’Alene under mostly sunny skies. The high in Spokane on Sunday was 74. The fair weather should continue through the weekend with similar temperatures. Computer forecast models show only a slight chance of showers on Sunday. A strong ridge of higher air pressure has formed along the Rockies and is pushing the polar jet stream and its associated storm track well to the north of the region. The models are showing that the system is likely to remain in place for up to a week, forecasters said. At 7 a.m., it was 58 at Spokane International Airport, 57 in downtown Spokane, 55 in Coeur d’Alene, 49 in Deer Park and 50 in Pullman.