Balmy long weekend in Okanagan, Kamloops has its downsides after warm, dry winter

Break out your sunglasses, it’s supposed to be a bit warmer than your average Easter weekend in Kamloops and the Okanagan.

After a warm winter, spring is looking to continue the trend with above average temperatures and sunny skies.

“You could be seeing temperatures on the order of anywhere from three to six degrees above normal into the weekend,” Environment Canada meteorologist Ken Dosanjh told iNFOnews.ca.

“A ridge of high pressure is ushering in this warmer air that’s essentially going to be deflecting any of these weather systems from moving into the area.”

The weather office is expecting Kelowna, Penticton and Vernon to hit a sunny high of 17 Celsius on Saturday and Sunday, rising to a high of 19 C on Monday. Overnight lows are supposed to be around 3 C with a chance of showers when people start heading back to work next week.

Kamloops is supposed to be a bit warmer with a high temperature of 17 C on Saturday, 19 C on Sunday and 21 C on Monday and overnight lows around 6 C.

Dosanjh said it’s still a bit too early to tell if any significant rainfall will come to make up for low snowpack levels.

“While it’s a nice weekend, we want to be mindful, of course, of what’s to come. So we’ll continue to be watching out for any sort of big impacts moving forward,” he said.

The warm, sunny weather means there isn’t much reprieve for low snowpacks and lake levels coming soon.

The Okanagan is currently at 62 per cent of its normal snowpack and the South Thompson is around 83 per cent of normal, according to the latest update from the River Forecast Centre.

Osoyoos Lake hit a record low water level in February at roughly 277 metres, and Okanagan Lake is sitting at 341.58 m, which is above the record low of 341.34 m.

The Osoyoos Lake level is so low that the Town of Osoyoos boat launch is currently temporarily closed to protect the infrastructure, according to the International Osoyoos Lake Board of Control.

It will use the Zosel Dam to try to manage the lake level since the dry conditions are impacting access.

“Currently, cooler temperatures are slowing snowmelt, and forecasts show no significant precipitation in the near term,” the board said in a media release.

“The dry conditions mean that lake operators have limited water available to both raise lake levels and sustain flows in the Okanogan River. Low water levels have limited lake access, with impacts on boating, recreation, and noxious weed control.”