Warmer weather finally arrives in Lower Mainland after unusually nasty winter

After a winter filled with snow, rain and record cold temperatures, B.C. is about to get much warmer this week in time for spring break.

Temperatures were already rising Sunday, accompanied by a break in the grey skies, and experts say the sunny weather is going to last throughout most of the week across the province.

“It’s all courtesy of a ridge of high pressure that’s flowing in and it’s a very strong one,” Global B.C. meteorologist Yvonne Schalle said.

“That will bring temperatures right across the southern half of the province anywhere between the upper teens for areas near the water, and areas inland could potentially be in the low 20s.”

Schalle said the middle of the week could also see some more seasonal records get matched or even broken — one of them having stood since 1947.

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“On March 19, the record high was 13.9 degrees, and we could get up to 14, 15 degrees that day this week,” she said.

Schalle said Metro Vancouver will be able to enjoy the sunshine until Friday when some rain could roll in and spoil the party. But people in the Fraser Valley and the Interior may be able to stay outside for even longer.

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The warmup comes just in time for spring break, and many families were already out enjoying the beaches on Sunday.

“It’s about time,” Nanaimo resident Shaun Dychko said while playing with his family on Kitsilano Beach. “We’ve been waiting a while for this.”

Others took the opportunity to start up their first beach volleyball game of the year. One of the players, who’s originally from Toronto, couldn’t believe his luck.

“This is unheard of,” he said. “Playing beach volleyball in March? It’s not possible out east.”

B.C. saw record cold temperatures this winter along with unusually long stretches of snowfall for the South Coast, which created massive traffic headaches and forced parks and roads to close.

February was particularly chilly, becoming the coldest on record for B.C. That has people all the more excited that March is shaping up to be much warmer.

“Even last week it was really cold so we’re really happy it’s warmed up so quickly,” one woman said while walking the seawall in Kitsilano. “It’s fantastic.”