Clouds are thickening overhead as a Gulf storm moving north and east along the Appalachians begins to affect our region. (See radar loop, below.) By this afternoon, we should see the rain begin to fall, delivering as much as an inch before it races off to upstate New York and we begin to dry out on Thursday.

We'll be on the east side of the storm's center, which means we'll see the milder, wetter portion of this weather event. Forecasters out at Sterling are even suggesting we'll hear some thunder after midnight as the mild air gets unstable and triggers a few thunderstorms.

The winds from the south will also drive more water up the Chesapeake and hold it there. That will mean some high water at high tides into Thursday. But there are no flood warnings yet.

Once this storm blows away, we'll get some 25 to 30 mph winds from the west, and clearing skies on Thursday and Friday. Rain on the western slopes of the Alleghenies will change to snow overnight into Friday, however, with "up to a couple inches of snowfall expected for some prime upslope locales," forecasters said.

Here on the east side of the mountains, we can expect colder temperatures, from the mid-30s to near 40 degrees overnight into Saturday. And that will set us up for the next event.

On Saturday morning, another coastal storm will be cranking up off Hatteras. The counter-clockwise flow around that low will send plenty of ocean moisture into our region. And with fairly cold air in place, forecasters still think that could produce some sort of wintry mix. Here's how they phrased it in this morning's discussion:

"Broad cyclogenesis off the Carolina coast expected Saturday morning. Some areas of banded precipitation extending northwest into the [forecast area] expected. Temperatures cold enough for snow except over the bay. Included some low chances [in the forecast] for snow or rain/snow mix. Impact potential looks low at this time, though the situation will continue to be monitored closely."

Here's a very impressive analysis of the approaching winter weather by Mr. Foot's panel of area science students.