A breezy Saturday, with near-normal temps

Smoke from west coast wildfires returns

The average Twin Cities high temperature is 70 degrees on Sept. 19. We’re expecting the metro area highs in the upper 60s to around 70 this Saturday.

Much of eastern Minnesota and western Wisconsin will see Saturday highs in the 60s, with 70s in western Minnesota:

rt0919h3
Saturday forecast highs
National Weather Service

We’ll flirt with 70 in the Twin Cities.

Smoke from western U.S. wildfires in is expected to return to much of Minnesota and western Wisconsin today. The smoke is expected to remain aloft, and not significantly affect air quality near ground level.

Political Coverage Powered by You

Your gift today creates a more connected Minnesota. MPR News is your trusted resource for election coverage, reporting and breaking news. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.

Winds pick up a bit Saturday afternoon, with gusts of 16 to 26 mph:

rt0919g3
Saturday 1 p.m. forecast wind gusts
National Weather Service

Plotted values are in knots, with 18 knots equal to around 20 mph and 23 knots equal to around 26 mph.

Fall colors

We’re seeing spotty fall color in the Twin Cities metro area, but our peak fall colors don’t typically arrive in the metro area until sometime in October.

Fall colors are really popping in parts of northern Minnesota. Here’s the latest fall color report from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources:

rt0918fall
Fall colors Friday
Minnesota Department of Natural Resources

The areas shaded yellow are showing the most changeover to fall colors at this point. Keep in mind that all deciduous trees are included in the fall color report, not just maples.

Here are some fall color details for Banning State Park, near Sandstone, Minn.:

Where to go
Blueberry slide trail is a great option for a short hike with river views. Trillium Alley is a nice trail to add on to other hikes its fairly short but has lots of maples that are showing alot of color right now!

What you'll see
Colors are popping but are patchy. We are noticing more color along the river with some bright reds and oranges mixed in with yellows

The Wisconsin fall color report can be found here.

Updraft will be updated around 10 a.m. with details on the rest of your weekend plus a look at the week ahead.

Programming note

You can hear my live weather updates on MPR News at 7:35 a.m., 9:35 a.m. and 4:39 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday.