Boston woke up on Saturday, April 4, 2026, to patchy fog curling in along the harbor and temperatures in the mid-50s. It felt like a decent start for a spring weekend, but the mild setup is on borrowed time. A backdoor front sliding in off the ocean is set to knock temperatures down sharply this afternoon, with coastal neighborhoods dropping from the low 50s into the low 40s by late day.
Afternoon Chill and Gusty Winds
As the front moves through, winds will flip from the north to the east on Saturday, tapping cooler marine air. Expect steady breezes around 10 to 16 mph, with some stronger gusts up to about 30 mph along exposed shorelines, bridges and the harbor. Inland parts of the city will hang on to relatively milder air, so the temperature gap from the coast to the interior could feel pretty dramatic over a short distance. Forecasters at the National Weather Service Boston/Norton outline this setup.
Rain Late Saturday, Heavier Showers Sunday
A chance of light rain or drizzle arrives late Saturday night, roughly between 11 p.m. Saturday, April 4, and 3 a.m. Sunday, April 5, 2026. Sunday turns into the soggier day, with more widespread rain, patches of fog and highs near 60°F. New rainfall totals are expected to run light to moderate, on the order of a few tenths of an inch, but Sunday clearly shapes up as the wetter and milder half of the weekend.
Boaters, Commuters and What To Bring
Small Craft Advisories are posted for many coastal waters this morning, and a Gale Watch is up for parts of the outer waters on Sunday morning into the afternoon, so less-experienced boaters are better off staying tied to the dock. On land, drivers and MBTA riders should plan for periods of reduced visibility in fog and rain, build in some extra time, and check the MBTA before heading out. Looking ahead, forecasters expect a cooler, mainly dry stretch to settle in early next week, with a brief chance of rain and snow mixing in Monday night, April 6, into Tuesday morning, April 7, 2026, though little in the way of travel impacts is anticipated.
