Winter Officially Arrives Today

Although we've had winter in the southwest for much of the last two months, the season officially arrives at 11:12am Saturday morning.

It has been another early start to winter, but Environment Canada Senior Climatologist David Phillips says so far, it's not as harsh as it was last year.

"This year, it didn't start as early as last year, and you certainly haven't had as much snow," he said. "I mean, Regina had 200 centimetres of snow last year, and they have records that go back to 1883 and they have never seen as much snow. They clearly haven't been shovelling, plowing and pushing it, but the cold temperatures have been like a yo-yo."

The past couple of months also included a number of cold snaps, including an ongoing one that is giving us minus-double-digit temperatures and wind chill factors approaching -30. Phillips says, however, we could get a nice Christmas gift from Mother Nature in the coming week.

"The good news is that from Sunday on, it looks like wide-open weather," he said. "Nothing to stop you from visiting your in-laws or your family or friends. People can get around and about, and even people who do the last-minute shopping, they'll have time on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, because the weather looks pretty good."

Phillips adds we could have a warm-up by Christmas Eve, and we should enjoy sunshine and a White Christmas on Wednesday.

For more weather forecast details, click the local weather link on Swift Current Online.