Freezing temperatures are coming a week early to the St. Joseph area, as snow threatens to dust neighbors to the north.

Meteorologist Justin Gesling said it will be a “touch breezy and cold” for the Pony Express PumpkinFest, which begins tonight at Patee Park and the Pony Express National Museum. But participants should stay dry, as there is no serious threat of rain for St. Joseph. However, the cold front brings a chance of sleet late Sunday.

Temperatures are forecast to dip to 31 degrees this evening, 28 on Saturday, and 30 on Sunday night. But highs will range from the mid-50s to mid-40s as the weekend progresses.

“We’re just hoping for good weather,” said Cindy Daffron, director of the Pony Express Museum. Rain on Thursday kept Ms. Daffron and volunteers inside prepping for the festival, which features a “mountain” of lighted pumpkins. The festival kicks off at 5 p.m. today, with the lighting of Pumpkin Mountain at 8 p.m.

Northwest Missouri State University’s 1 p.m. home game on Saturday will likely be a cold one as a front moves through Northwest Missouri. Derek Deroche, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said the average first freeze in the Maryville, Mo., area occurs Oct. 10, while the first freeze for the St. Joseph area is around Oct. 18.

A slight chance of precipitation accompanies the cold front into the Maryville area, Mr. Deroche said, which could mean rain turning to snow Saturday. He said no significant amounts were expected, maybe light flurries.

“It’s a little rare to get snow in October,” Mr. Deroche said, adding that it becomes less uncommon toward the end of the month.

The Kansas City area experiences an average of 3.33 inches of precipitation in October and .2 inch of snowfall, according to National Weather Service records. January sees the most snow, with 5.8 inches. And snow is more likely in April, with an average of .8 inch, than in October, according to the NWS data.

Jimmy Myers can be reached

at jimmym@npgco.com.