If you want to spend a little time outside this week without getting soaked, tomorrow offers a narrow window.
The low-pressure system that brought on the gloomy drizzle Tuesday had largely drifted inland by Wednesday afternoon, with an overcast but mostly dry stretch expected through most of Thursday.
“Thursday is kind of the best chance of dry weather,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Ryan Walbrun.
But don’t go stashing your umbrellas too deep in the closet just yet.
Southerly winds will increase late Thursday ahead of the next approaching storm system, this one dropping down from the Gulf of Alaska, said Walbrun. Widespread rainfall is expected to start midmorning in the North Bay and hit the rest of the region by the afternoon, he said. The rain is likely to turn to showers and possible thunderstorms by Friday night, lasting through Saturday night, with moderate to heavy rainfall and even small hail possible in some parts of the Bay Area.