Scots who have been busy lighting barbecues and looking out their sun cream should enjoy the hot spell while they can, the Met Office has advised.
Temperatures in the 20s were recorded this week as much as 10 degrees above the average temperature for this time of year.
Scotland as a whole has been more than a degree hotter than average in both February and March this year, and has basked in more than 20% more sunshine than average in all three months of the year so far.
Temperatures today are set to stay the same as the previous few days.
But by Saturday dark clouds and rain could take temperatures down into single figures with winds picking up and residents shivering in a much more typical Scottish spring.
A Met Office spokeswoman said the best of the remaining sunshine will be seen over Stirlingshire and southern Perthshire although there will be a maximum temperature of only 18C.
She described the coming days as “a mixed bag” and said people will “feel the difference” from the previous week’s sunshine.
“There is a polar maritime air mass coming in from the north west. Generally speaking, that means the air will be much cooler than usual.”
On Wednesday the Met Office released a picture of an almost entirely cloudless country. It was less than a month ago that widespread warnings were issued for snow and ice across many parts of the country.