Let's Talk About the Weather...

OK. So the fantastic climate in the Okanagan is Canada's worst kept secret, but that still doesn't mean it isn't worth mentioning. Stepping off a plane this week after two weeks in Saskatchewan -- where the temperature was still a chilly -4C  and the snow drifts were still 6 ft high -- it really hit me how great it is to live in Kelowna.  At the beginning of April the sun was shining, I didn't need a coat, and spring was most definitely in the air.

So... how does Kelowna stack up to the rest of Canada?

According to stats at The Weather Network, the lowest 'average low temperature' in Kelowna is -4.6C in January, compared to -21.6C in Saskatoon, -22.8C in Winnipeg, -12.6 in Charlottetown and a downright chilly -30.9C in Yellowknife.  Brrr.

Kelowna's average temperatures are above zero ten months of the year (Feb - Nov), compared to 7 months in Edmonton (Apr - Oct) and 8 months in Montreal (Apr - Nov). So far so good.

The city's highest 'average high temperature' is 29.2C in July. Compare that to 22C in Vancouver, 21.9C in Victoria and 26.4C in Toronto and you will soon see why Canadians flock to the Okanagan for their summer vacations.

In terms of precipitation, Kelowna gets an average 763mm rainfall a year, compared to 1474mm in Vancouver. I had to use Vancouver again for this statistic because my husband is convinced it does nothing but rain in Vancouver. I have tried to convince him otherwise, but am not helped by the fact that every time we watch something on TV that has been filmed in Vancouver, guess what? It's raining.

Lastly, Kelowna gets on average 100cm of snow per year as compared to 126cm in Calgary, 216 in Prince George and 202cm in Ottawa. Conversely, local ski resort Big White gets a whopping 750cm of snow per year - hurrah! Yes, Kelowna truly does have the best of both worlds.

This posting may be a little stats heavy, but it does prove my point.  The weather here does not suck.  It is actually downright decent. I love the fact that the locals constantly tell the summer tourists 'it's not like this every day, you know. Come the winter it's solid cloud - we never see the sun'. I have decided this is akin to the story we Canadians tell the Americans - 'No don't come to Canada, it's really dull up here.  Really, really dull'. It's the human psyche.  When things are good, you can't help but want to keep them to yourselves.

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Image sourced from www.mycartoonthing.com