Fall is a transition season, which means temperatures can go up and down depending on what week you’re in. Map: The Weather Network.
Experts say Canadian weather should be near normal throughout autumn
With autumn just around the corner, what does Canadian weather hold in store? Experts say normal is making a comeback.
“It’s a fairly typical looking fall overall,” says Weather Network chief meteorologist Chris Scott. “We’ll see mostly near normal temperatures across the country with pockets of above normal in some places.”
Fall is a transition season, which means temperatures can go up and down depending on what week you’re in.
Eastern Canada is expected to enjoy seasonable weather during the fall of 2013. Map: accuweather.com.
“Most of Canada should enjoy warm, dry stretches in September, but on cue the weather will start to change quickly as we go into October and November,” said Scott.
Canadian weather – The West
Brett Anderson, senior meteorologist for accuweather.com, says fall could start early across the southern Prairies, with an earlier-than-normal freeze from Alberta to Manitoba.
However, folks from Regina to Winnipeg should still get their fair share of warm afternoons for the month of September as invasions of chilly air get replaced by brief, but significant warmups.
“The ski and snowboard season across the Canadian Rockies should start on or ahead of schedule as colder, snowy weather gets established from October through November,” said Anderson.
After an unusually hot and dry summer, much of British Columbia can expect more seasonable conditions this fall as the rainy season returns on schedule.
The period from late September through October actually could end up slightly wetter than normal in the Vancouver area as the Pacific storm track gets directed toward southern British Columbia.
Canadian weather – The East
Unseasonably warm and drier weather will dominate across northeastern Canada, including much of Atlantic Canada, this coming fall, as a persistent area of high pressure prevails across the region.
“Precipitation will also be mainly near normal with patches of above,” says Scott, adding that in some places, November brings some of the biggest snowstorms.
St. John’s, Newfoundland, can expect to see a continuation of the unseasonably warm conditions into the fall as sea surface temperatures of the northwest Atlantic remain well above normal.
However, at least one tropical cyclone could still directly impact Nova Scotia or Newfoundland from September into early October as the hurricane season in the Atlantic becomes more active.
The fall, as a whole, will be mild along the St. Lawrence Valley as the region remains under the influence of the high pressure ridge to the northeast. Montreal and Quebec City can expect plenty of warm days for the month of September, while October will bring drier weather with chilly nights.
Southern Ontario should expect more rain than usual for September and October, as moist air is funneled northward from the Gulf of Mexico from time to time.
After a wet summer, the Greater Toronto area should continue to receive more rain than usual, especially from late September into October followed by a colder, drier pattern for November.
CANADIAN FALL WEATHER FORECAST – THE WEATHER NETWORK
| Region | Temperature Outlook | Precipitation Outlook |
| British Columbia | Slightly above normal from the tip of Haida Gwaii down the Central and South Coasts and Vancouver Island; near normal elsewhere. | Above normal from near Chetwynd south and east through the Rockies and Columbia mountains. Near normal elsewhere. |
| Alberta | Near normal. | Above normal in the central and southern Rockies and adjacent foothills; and across the extreme south into the Cypress Hills. Near normal elsewhere. |
| Saskatchewan | Near normal. | Above normal in the Cypress Hills region. Near normal elsewhere. |
| Manitoba | Near normal. | Near normal. |
| Ontario | Near normal though coastal areas near Winisk may average a little above normal. | Near normal. |
| Quebec | Above normal in eastern Quebec, including the Gaspésie and the Lower St. Lawrence valley, as well as remote areas east of Hudson Bay. Near normal elsewhere. | Above normal to the east of much of Hudson Bay and Ungava Bay. Near normal elsewhere. |
| The Maritimes and Newfoundland | Generally above normal. Near normal temperatures in southern and western parts of Nova Scotia; and central and northern Labrador. | Generally near normal but a tropical system or two could give some swaths of slightly above average rainfall. |
| Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut | Above normal for much of northern Nunavut. Slightly below normal in a large area centered on Baker Lake / Qamani’tuaq. Near normal elsewhere. | Near normal in most areas but above normal across most of northern Nunavut. |