Don’t break out the parkas and snow boots just yet: Manitoba is looking at a nice fall with near-normal temperatures for the season, according to Anthony Farnell, Global News’ chief meteorologist.
Farnell told 680 CJOB things will get a bit cooler in the coming weeks, but there will still be plenty of sun in this part of the country.
“(Manitoba’s) ‘near normal’ in October is a bit of a different situation — it does start to get colder quickly, but I’m not expecting any extremes across Manitoba, and I think that’s OK,” he said.
“I think people are OK with that in 2020, and as long as we can be outdoors, I think most of us will be happy.”
Although Farnell said daytime cold weather isn’t really expected to hit until November, this year’s winter might be a bit of a different story, with plenty of storm weather on the horizon in the not-so-distant future.
“Later in November and December is when we start to see the effects of a La Nina, and that’s going to really influence our pattern into the winter.
“The heart of the continent oftentimes is also where the Arctic air loves to go, and that’s something where, with La Nina, we see a jet stream pattern that tends to push down that cold air, mostly out west.
“I think Manitoba, Winnipeg, you guys are going to be kind of on the edge — a bellwether. You can go one way where it turns cold, and then other times it’ll get milder, but I think it’s going to be an active and stormy winter ahead.”
Despite cold on the way, Farnell said he expects to see many Manitobans spending as much time outdoors as they can, to make the most of their environment during this COVID-19-affected year.