Weekend weather: Spring cools off a bit for weekend

The cooler side of spring takes over for the next several days with highs in the lower to middle 50s and lows near freezing overnight.

A large low pressure area that settled over the Pacific Northwest on Tuesday slowly moves east today, reducing the shower threat and leaving the Spokane area under partly sunny skies.

But another low-pressure system takes up position off the West Coast, sending a renewed chance of rain and snow showers over the Inland Northwest through early next week.

Easter Sunday is going to be cool with a chance of showers in most locations outside the Columbia Basin.

North Idaho is expected to stay under the shower threat today and through the weekend.

Frost-sensitive plants will probably need to be covered or taken indoors with a low on Friday night of about 29 in Spokane.

The total lunar eclipse that occurs at 4:54 a.m. on Saturday may be a hit-and-miss affair.

A computer analysis provided by the National Weather Service shows that cloud cover should be around 50 percent and the chance of showers down around 25 percent at 5 a.m. in Spokane. The temperature should be around 30 degrees.

The greatest shower chances will be near the mountains. The Columbia Basin will offer a lot more sun and milder daytime highs.

Moses Lake is expected to be sunny to partly sunny through Saturday with highs in the upper 50s.

At the same time, Sandpoint has showers in the forecast each day through Tuesday with highs near 50 or cooler.

Weather service forecasters said that there is a chance of 1 to 2 inches of snow early next week in North Idaho and western Montana at all elevations.

A piece of storm energy from the weekend’s coastal low pressure system could swing inland to the south of the region and then turn north, encountering cold air east of Spokane.

Normal temperatures for Spokane this time of year would be in the middle 50s for a high and middle 30s for a low.