Rio Rancho resident Harry Rose walks his 3-year-old Border Collie named Tulip at the Rio Rancho Sports Complex on a sunny, 60-degree Thursday afternoon. The weather is expected to warm up over the weekend with temperatures in the 70s. (Gregory Hasman/Observer)

Rio Rancho resident Harry Rose took his 3-year-old Border Collie named Tulip for a walk at the Rio Rancho Sports Complex on a warm Thursday afternoon. 

It’s picnic time and barbecue time, he said, adding that, “This is like a long time and coming.” 

He feels that way because Thursday’s high was in the low 60s, a far cry from Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning when lows were in the 20s and the city received up to 5.5 inches of snow. 

“It was like socked in, wet, wet snow (but) I didn’t shovel,” Rose said. “(I thought) it will melt off.” 

As of Thursday, it did not melt on parts of his house, but that is likely to change this weekend as temperatures are expected to reach the low to mid-70s on Friday and Saturday, and upper 70s on Sunday, according to the National Weather Service of Albuquerque. 

The record high for March 27 in Rio Rancho is 81 degrees, which was set in 2012. 

Monday is expected to remain warm with temps reaching 77 degrees, just below the March 28 record of 80 degrees set in 2019, before a cold front Monday night will cool things off. Highs are expected to drop to about 60 degrees on Tuesday with a chance for showers.  

“It won’t get warm again until June or late May, anyway,” Rose said, adding that the 70-plus degree weather coming up is “kind of a fluke anyway” due to it being late March. 

“But the air feels refreshing, doesn’t it?” Rose asked.