Canada’s Thanksgiving forecast holds a tale of two seasons
An active pattern draped over Canada this long weekend will paint a vastly different story depending on where you are in the country
An active pattern settling over Canada for the long Thanksgiving weekend will bring a significant swing in conditions from west to east.
Some folks will experience a classic fall holiday, while others will enjoy conditions just warm enough to put away the jackets for a bit.
Here’s a look at what you can expect across Canada for your long weekend.
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High pressure dominates over Western Canada
The overall pattern we’ll see develop heading into Thanksgiving Day is a ridge of high pressure building over the west while a steep trough sets up over the Great Lakes.
Folks across Western Canada will kick off the long weekend with a weak centre of high pressure in place over the region.
This ridge will mostly bring sunshine and comfortable temperatures to B.C.’s South Coast, Alberta, and Saskatchewan. Northwesterly winds will help stave off excessive warmth, keeping things nice and seasonable for your weekend.
Temperatures in Calgary will jump into the lower 20s for your day on Monday, while folks around Regina and Saskatoon can expect Thanksgiving highs in the mid-teens.
Things will start to change a bit as we head deeper into the weekend. A weak system on Saturday will push showers and chilly weather into Manitoba, including Winnipeg. Meanwhile, precipitation in northern B.C. will sink south toward Vancouver and the Interior by Monday.
A pesky low ends the weekend for Eastern Canada
It’s a different story back east where an upper-level trough will keep conditions cooler and more unsettled through the long weekend.
You’ll see chilly but seasonable weather to kick off the weekend across Ontario and Quebec, with a high of 14°C expected in Toronto and a daytime temperature around 12°C over in Ottawa.
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Showery conditions will push into Quebec on Friday night and slide into Atlantic Canada by Saturday. Gusty winds of 60-80 km/h will accompany this disturbance as it crosses the region.
We’ll see more hit-and-miss showers throughout the Atlantic provinces throughout the weekend as multiple lows swirl over the region.
The bigger story, though, is the growing chance for a low-pressure system to develop south of the Great Lakes that could push showers into southern and eastern Ontario beginning Sunday evening and into the day Monday.
Thanksgiving Day will feature blustery conditions with colder temperatures that’ll be more typical of late October or early November. Monday’s highs will barely scrape into the lower teens throughout the region, with chilly nighttime lows.
Frost and freeze conditions are likely in communities away from urban areas as temperatures dip into the single digits.
