Spring arrived early this year, with the season teasing itself as early as February.

The equinox came to town on March. 19 with what may be a final blast of the winter that was not, but the snow and cold was short-lived as temperatures rebounded.

David Phillips, senior climatologist for Environment Canada, expects the nice weather to continue as we roll on through April.
“We’ve had really spring-like if not almost early summer-like weather in late February and the first half of March has been very warm. It has been 12 degrees, and 15 degrees in late February. We’ve already had a taste of spring,” Phillips said.

The early start of spring happened because the winter in Canada wasn’t as cold as usual. Even though there were a few cold days, most of the time it was warmer than usual, which made spring come earlier.

”Winter in Canada didn’t really have its full force that it normally does. We’ve had some days that were winter-like, but overall, it was milder than normal, and the warmth was so persistent,” Phillips added.

Now that spring is officially here, many are curious about what to expect in the coming months.

Phillips defines spring as a transitional season. In essence, it brings a mix of unpredictable weather as nature transitions from winter to summer.

With longer daylight hours and rising temperatures, we’ll soon feel the warmth of the sun on our skin, and sunscreen needs to be added back into our routines. However, spring also brings allergies as flowers bloom and the trees bud.

Weather-wise, Phillips describes this season as a conflict between cold and warm air masses, leading to fluctuating weather patterns.

“There’s a battle out there or a war that exists in the weather. It is the war between winter wanting to hold on and spring wanting to get a foothold so it’s a constant battle between cold air and warm air.”

This back-and-forth will continue for a while before warmer temperatures become more consistent.

‘’Back and forth will be the more spring-like wins out over the return of winter-like and that’s what we will see. Overall, we think this spring will be more like our winter, it will be warmer than normal, but it won’t be as dramatically different. It’d be kind of more typical to be a little warmer than normal, April, May, and June. And so, we’ll begin to see the green-up taking place, the ice and snow will melt finally and be gone.’’

Planning activities during this time can be challenging, as weather forecasts may change rapidly.

“Sometimes you have wild storms, sometimes you have winter winds out for a day or two and then spring comes back. What nature gives us in terms of snow, just wait two days and it’ll be gone because of rain or warmer temperatures.”

Therefore, Phillips advises staying updated with daily forecasts to be prepared for any sudden weather changes.

One day you may need sunglasses, the next, an umbrella.