Warm spring-like weather is finally making its way into the Okanagan-Shuswap region, with temperatures forecast to be above average over the next few days.
Environment Canada meteorologist Doug Lundquist said usually, spring temperatures in the region get up to 4 C but this past weekend saw highs of 7 to 8 C.
“For this week, we’re looking at perhaps a few days way above average like 9 to 10 degrees today,” he said.
“The weekend again could be above average, with 6 to 8 degrees, something like that. There will be a few cooler days in between, maybe getting to 4 to 6 degrees from Tuesday through to Friday.”
The spring-like weather means the region could likely see rain, snow and a rain-snow mix from Wednesday to Thursday. In higher terrain, the snow may collect and in lower elevations but could melt away throughout the day.
As for an actual spring forecast, Lundquist said to expect a cold March.
“For most of Western Canada, spring is looking to be colder than average, and it’s a shift from what we were looking at a month ago.”
“Sometimes, these models do flip back and forth, but it scares me a bit that the trend is towards colder though,” he said.
Daytime temperatures won’t dip below zero, but Lundquist said to expect the frost to come during the night.
“We won’t see deep arctic air like we did that took us way into the minus temperatures,” he said.
He said the colder temperatures this spring will cancel out the warmth and mild winter we just had. He said this means spring may be a bit delayed, but shouldn’t have too much of an adverse effect on crops.
“March and April are the months when the weather warms up rapidly, so yes, it will warm up. It’s just that maybe, it’ll be a bit slower than usual this year.”
READ: Higher gas prices led to higher January consumer prices in Canada