Mild temperatures and sunshine ahead in weather forecast

The next five to seven days should be great for outdoor fun, but probably not warm enough yet for the barbecue.

This week’s change to mild spring weather should continue through this weekend and on into early next week.

Highs in Spokane will run from the lower to middle 60s with mostly sunny skies. However, breezy conditions are likely for the next several days with wind gusts up to 20 mph.

A weak weather system is expected to cross the region Thursday night and linger through Saturday, causing little change but preventing a warm up to the 70s.

With enough sunshine around, even the upper 50s will feel comfortable, and the breezy weather should be gone by Sunday.

North Idaho will have a slight chance of showers Friday and Saturday, mainly in Bonner and Boundary counties, but the Coeur d’Alene area and Silver Valley could see a shower on Saturday.

Temperatures will be a few degrees cooler in North Idaho, but the overall forecast still calls for mostly sunny conditions in valley locations with highs in the lower 60s.

Any showers cruising through the mountains could bring snow to the highest elevations, but high temperatures at the 4,000-foot elevation could reach the lower 50s.

The mountains also have a greater chance of showers, but still only in the 30-percent range near Schweitzer ski area.

Clouds tend to build and linger along the slopes under this weather scenario.

To the west, the Columbia Basin will be several degrees warmer and have fewer clouds. The Tri-Cities area should see warm weather with highs in the lower 70s.

To the south in the Palouse, highs should be in the upper 50s to lower 60s.

On Tuesday, a number of locations in the region hit highs in the lower 70 for the first time since Sept. 20.