Weekend weather: Strong winds to hit Hawke's Bay

A still Friday belied the wind which would pick up over the weekend. Photo / Warren Buckland

Hold on to your hats Hawke's Bay, it's going to be a windy weekend, but despite the gales, the East Coast will still see nicer weather than much of the country.

MetService Meteorologist Lewis Ferris said people in Hawke's Bay will be waking up to a fine day on Saturday.

With temperatures only dropping to 10C overnight, it should be a relatively warm start to the day with no frosts, and Napier and Hastings are both expected to see a high of 19C.

He said northwesterlies would develop throughout the day.

Sunday was not looking quite so flash. Ferris said strong, gusty northwesterlies would be the main theme for the day.

There is also expected to be a period of rain on Sunday morning, which will clear later in the day.

Ferris said Napier and Hastings would both be seeing highs of 18C on Sunday.

He recommended cancelling any plans which involved heading out to the ranges, as heavy rain is expected, but this will not affect coastal areas.

Despite the wind, Hawke's Bay and the rest of the East Coast is looking a lot better than the rest of the country.

He said the country had just experienced a period of fronts "attacking" the west, which often left to dry, warmer spells in the East.

Areas like Westland, Fiordland, Buller, northwest Nelson, the Tararua Range and Mount Taranaki are all expected to see heavy rain.