Chilling forecast
Old Farmer’s Almanac predicts three major winter storms for P.E.I.
Too early to think about snow?
Not if you have cracked open the Canadian edition of “The Old Farmer’s 2020 Almanac”, which hit the shelves earlier this week.
Nearly all of Canada — Prince Edward Island most definitely included — should expect above-average precipitation this winter, much of it falling as snow, says Jack Burnett, the almanac’s managing editor.
The almanac forecasts that the snowiest periods for P.E.I. will fall in mid-November, early to mid- and late-December, January and early February.
“I would categorize it as cold, but not bone chilling, and snowy, but not burial-mode with three exceptions (those walloping snowstorms).’’ Jack Burnett
He says while snow is expected to start early, the “main hardcore snow’’ will be over by mid-February. Islanders, he adds, should brace for three major snowstorms – what he is calling “good, old wallops”.
The almanac is even going a bit out on a limb by forecasting those storms to fall on Dec. 9, New Year’s Day, which could add more headache to hangovers and put the Polar Bear Swim on ice, and Jan. 31.
Burnett believes P.E.I.’s winter overall is not shaping up to be overly punishing.
“I would categorize it as cold, but not bone chilling, and snowy, but not burial-mode with three exceptions (those walloping snowstorms).’’
Winter temperatures will be near or slightly above normal, on average, with the coldest periods in mid-December, midand late-January, February and early March. April and May in the province are expected to be cooler than normal, but with rainfall below normal.
Burnett says Islanders should have a warmer than normal summer in 2020 with below normal rainfall — good news for beachgoers but likely cause for concern for farmers who have had their fill of dry, hot summers of late.