Warm start to October, then a sunny, cooler weekend on Cape Ann

October opens with temperatures in the low 70s on Cape Ann, and the forecast calls for dry, sunny weather for the weekend's outdoor events.

The forecast

The National Weather Service in Norton expects the following in Gloucester:

• Thursday: Partly sunny, with a high near 72 and a light southwest wind. Partly cloudy Thursday night, with a low around 63.
• Friday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 73. There is a slight chance of showers after 5 p.m. Showers are more likely Friday night before 2 a.m., with a 50% chance. Low around 56.
• Saturday: Sunny and cooler, with a high near 61 and a north wind. Mostly clear Saturday night, low around 52.
• Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 59 and an east wind around 7 mph.

That rain chance falls on Friday night football, when Manchester Essex hosts Amesbury at 6:30 p.m. and Gloucester hosts Winthrop at 7 p.m.

Saturday and Sunday look clear for Gloucester's Community Safety Day, Cape Ann Animal Aid's Tails on the Trails walk and the rescheduled Cape Ann Symphony opener. See our picks for the week.

Tides

High tides in Gloucester Harbor, according to NOAA predictions:

• Thursday: 2:54 a.m. (9.1 feet) and 3:08 p.m. (10.4 feet). Low tides at 8:54 a.m. and 9:37 p.m.
• Friday: 3:49 a.m. (8.8 feet) and 4:05 p.m. (10.2 feet). Low tides at 9:48 a.m. and 10:36 p.m.
• Saturday: 4:51 a.m. (8.5 feet) and 5:09 p.m. (9.9 feet). Low tides at 10:48 a.m. and 11:40 p.m.

Rockport's tides run a few minutes earlier than Gloucester Harbor's. In the Essex River, high tides come about four to 11 minutes later.

Keeping an eye on the Essex Causeway

Essex residents can check water levels in real time. The town hosts two sensors in a statewide coastal flooding monitoring network backed by the state's energy and environmental affairs office and run by the Stone Living Lab. One is a tide gauge in the Essex River downtown. The other is an overland flooding sensor that switches on when water covers the Essex Causeway, part of Route 133. Links to both dashboards are on the town's website.

Still a mild drought

The state's most recent drought declaration, from Sept. 10, keeps the Northeast region, which includes Cape Ann, at Level 1, a mild drought. No new declaration had been posted as of Wednesday.

None of the four towns had posted changes to their water rules as of Wednesday evening. Rockport still bans all outdoor water use, and Gloucester still allows hand watering only, in the evening and early morning. Read the rules for each town.