The morning is yours — mostly sunny, southwest breeze around 5 mph, temperature climbing to 89 by early afternoon. After 3pm the clouds build and there's a 30% chance of showers and thunderstorms, but we're talking less than a tenth of an inch if anything falls. It's a day that asks you to front-load the outside plans and keep the evening flexible. Tonight stays in the mid-60s with the same 30% chance lingering into the dark.
The Taubman is open 10am to 5pm today, and if you're looking to duck the afternoon heat (or dodge the chance of weather), the current exhibitions give you a solid hour inside. The Virginia Museum of Transportation runs 10am to 5pm as well — train cars, old locomotives, the kind of thing that works any time of day. The market's open until 2pm with the usual Friday produce and bread vendors. Mill Mountain Theatre has shows tonight at 8pm if you want the evening spoken for. A Few Old Goats Brewing on the main floor here taps the weekend lineup at 4pm — check their board for what's fresh.
The greenway is the play this morning. Get out before noon and you'll have sun, shade from the trees, and the river moving slow and low after the recent rain. The Roanoke River Trail between Wasena Park and downtown stays mostly shaded through the middle stretch — about 3 miles out and back if you start from the flats. Mill Mountain is another option, but it's exposed near the top, and 89 in full sun is a different animal than 89 with a breeze down by the water. If the afternoon storms roll through, they'll be quick — this isn't an all-day rain, just a brief interruption.
Saturday brings more clouds and a 50% chance of rain, heavier in the evening with storms likely before 11pm. High around 85. If you've got something that needs dry pavement, today's your window. Sunday (not in this forecast) typically settles after a Saturday like that, but we'll see what the models say tomorrow.
At the flats, the courtyard is open and shaded through mid-afternoon — good spot to sit with coffee or a book before the heat peaks. The patio gets full sun, which is fine now but less appealing by 2pm. A Few Old Goats Brewing on the main floor opens at 4pm and runs late — walk over after the weather clears, see what's on tap, let the Friday evening sort itself out. The day splits clean: morning outside, afternoon inside, evening at the brewery. That's the plan.