One more day of jacket weather for NJ, then a nice Spring warm-up

Hey hey, I'm back! My 5-day-weekend mini-vacation was refreshing and productive. And I'm glad to be back in the weather center to carry you through the final days of March. (Well, I'd be happier if I could kick this nasty stomach bug...)

Wednesday's forecast looks very similar to Tuesday's — definitely in the category of jacket weather. Temperatures are hovering on either side of 30 degrees Wednesday morning, with forecast highs in the upper 40s to around 50 degrees Wednesday afternoon. We'll enjoy some good sunshine throughout the day, with fair-weather clouds arriving midday. Winds will be light, weather will be dry. Again, wear a jacket, and it will be a fine day.

By the way, tree pollen levels are now firmly in the "high" range. If you're sniffling and sneezing, with scratchy throat and watery eyes? Blame the trees. And welcome to Spring!

Another chilly night is ahead for Wednesday night, with low temps near the freezing mark in the lower 30s. Again, no weather problems.

Clouds will be on the increase Thursday. And temperatures will be on the rise too, thanks to a flip to a southerly breeze. (That's a warming wind for all but New Jersey's southern coast, from Atlantic City to Cape May.) Thursday afternoon's highs appear seasonable (par for the course for late March), in the lower to mid 50s.

New Jersey's impending warmup really kicks into high gear on Friday, as thermometers soar into the lower 60s (away from the coast). But again, the warmth comes at a cost — skies will be mostly cloudy, and I expect a few spotty showers and sprinkles around too. (Best chance of rain will be northwestern NJ, in the morning and midday hours.)

Saturday should be the warmest day of the week, as temperatures flirt with 70 degrees. Again, clouds will win the sky. And I can't completely rule out a late-day shower, depending on the timing and orientation of an approaching front. (I have serious doubts about any substantial precipitation on Saturday though — I've left this rain chance out of my on-air forecast for now.)

At some point Sunday, a cold front will 1.) introduce a period of healthy rainfall to New Jersey, and 2.) cause a cooldown. The exact timing of that front will dictate Sunday's high temperatures. If frontal passage occurs early in the day, highs will only reach the 50s (my preferred solution) before temperatures tumble. If the front stalls, we could see 60s for a third day in a row before the rain and the cooldown.

I do not anticipate any severe weather or flooding concerns from Sunday's rainfall. Given the impending cooldown (and again depending on the timeline), I could see a few snowflakes around North Jersey Sunday night. Nothing significant, nothing worthy of altering travel plans.

Beyond the front, we'll settle into seasonable spring weather to begin April on Monday. Our current forecast calls for sunshine and lower 50s.

Dan Zarrow is Chief Meteorologist for Townsquare Media New Jersey. Follow him on Facebook or Twitter for the latest forecast and realtime weather updates.