Rainy Friday, Pleasant Weekend

Rain will be the story of the day for Winnipeg as a stalling low pressure system continues to produce rainfall over portions of Southern Manitoba. The wet weather will give way to a fairly pleasant weekend, however, as a westerly flow develops and spreads warmer air eastwards across the Prairies.

Winnipeg can expect another 5-10 mm of rain today as a slow-moving low pressure system continues to produce a band of rain stretching from the Pilot Mound region northeastwards through the Red River Valley, over the south basin of Lake Winnipeg and off through the Nopiming Provincial Park into Ontario. With the wet weather, temperatures will be near-seasonal as the daytime high sits near 17°C. The wind will be gusty out of the north at around 30 km/h gusting to 50 km/h.

Forecast rainfall amounts from the RDPS for Friday between 7AM and 7PM local time.
Forecast rainfall amounts from the RDPS for Friday between 7AM and 7PM local time.

The rain will taper off this evening as the low moves off into Ontario. Clouds will then scattered out as the wind gradually tapers off and the temperature dips to a low near 7°C.

Saturday will be a fairly nice day with a high near 20°C under sunny skies. Expect a low near 11°C on Saturday night under clear skies.

Sunday will be a warmer day with temperatures climbing into the mid-20’s as warmer air spreads eastwards across the Prairies. Cloud cover will increase through the day, though, as a cool front sweeps through the Red River Valley in the afternoon. At this point, no rain is expected. Winds will shift from 20-30 km/h out of the south to 20-30 km/h out of the northwest behind the front. Skies will gradually clear overnight as temperatures head to a low near 13°C.

Long Range

Next week is looking relatively unsettled with multiple chances for rain through the week. Temperatures will be near seasonal for much of the week, although it appears that a more pronounced cool-down may come with some rain at the end of next week.

Winnipeg’s seasonal daytime high is currently 18°C while the seasonal overnight low is 6°C.

Warmer Weather Returns Alongside Chance of Rain

With the ridge of high pressure that brought the decidedly fall-like temperatures now moving off to the southeast, temperatures will begin to warm and head back towards seasonal. Although today will bring plenty of sun to the region, a low pressure system is heading our way from Idaho and will bring cloud and a renewed chance for rain for Thursday night and Friday.

A beautiful sunny day, hopefully unimpeded by a rogue cloud bank that should remain in North Dakota, will be in place through Winnipeg & the Red River Valley today. Our very cool start to the day will be quickly forgotten as temperatures climb to around the 20°C mark this afternoon with a southerly wind near 20 km/h. Tonight will be milder than last night with a low near 10°C.

Thursday will bring increasing cloudiness to the region ahead of an incoming low pressure system. A southerly wind once again near 20 km/h will continue to draw mild air northwards and help temperatures climb to a high near 22°C. By evening, an area of rain will likely push into the region from the southwest, with the wet weather continuing overnight as temperatures fall to a low near 14°C.

The GDPS is forecasting a swath of 20-30mm of rain through Winnipeg on Thursday night and Friday, however some other models suggest much less rain and the main swath pushed a bit further southeast.
The GDPS is forecasting a swath of 20-30mm of rain through Winnipeg on Thursday night and Friday, however some other models suggest much less rain and the main swath pushed a bit further southeast.

Friday will be mainly cloudy with a continued chance of rain through Winnipeg and the Red River Valley eastwards to the Ontario border. Winds will shift out of the north as the low pressure system moves into Ontario which will combine with the extensive cloud cover to keep our daytime high to just 16 or 17°C. As skies clear on Friday night, temperatures will dip to a cool low near 7°C.

Long Range

The weekend is looking quite pleasant with dry weather, plenty of sunshine and daytime highs returning to the low- to mid-20’s.

Winnipeg’s seasonal daytime high is currently 18°C while the seasonal overnight low is 6°C.

Unsettled Friday Leads Into Pleasant Weekend

Winnipeg & the Red River Valley will see one more day of unsettled weather before warmer, drier weather moves in for the weekend.

Wet weather is on the way this morning as a low pressure system passes through the Red River Valley, bringing showers with the risk of a thunderstorm across the region. All the rain should move out by midday with just a very slight chance of isolated showers through the afternoon as the cloud breaks up a bit. Temperatures will climb to a high near 18°C with a gusty northwesterly wind increasing to 20-30 km/h in the afternoon. Clouds will scatter tonight as we head to a low near 9°C. There will, however, be some lake effect showers streaming off the lee of the lakes, so depending on the exact wind direction, areas to the south-southeast to east-southeast of both Lake Winnipeg and Lake Manitoba may see some additional cloud and shower activity into Saturday morning.

A swath of showers is expected across Southern Manitoba this morning.
A swath of showers is expected across Southern Manitoba this morning.

Saturday will be a pleasant day with light winds and partly cloudy skies.1 Temperatures will rebound to around 20°C for a high. Clouds will begin moving in on Saturday evening for a mostly cloudy night with low temperatures dipping to around 12°C.

Sunday will bring mixed skies to Winnipeg & the Red River Valley with gusty southerly winds developing ahead of an incoming low pressure system. Temperatures will be warm, with highs climbing to around 24 or 25°C. Sunday night will continue fairly cloudy with a chance of showers. Temperatures will dip to around 11°C.

Long Range

The start of next week looks quite cool as a cold front pushes through on Monday bringing distinctly fall-like weather as cool Arctic air pushes into the region. Daytime highs in the mid-teens look quite possible for the first couple days next week before temperatures rebound back towards seasonal mid-week.

Winnipeg’s seasonal daytime high is currently 20°C while the seasonal overnight low is 7°C.


  1. Save for any remaining lake-effect cloud/showers first thing in the morning. 

Seasonably Cool & Unsettled

Temperatures will be seasonably cool in the Red River Valley through the remainder of the week with the chance of showers returning to the region.

Today will be fairly pleasant, all things considered, with a fair amount of sunshine until cloud cover moves in through the mid- to late afternoon ahead of a low pressure system lifting northeastwards out of the Northern Plains. Temperatures will climb to around 20°C this afternoon.

Tonight will bring showers and/or thunderstorms to Southern Manitoba, however the exact distribution of the precipitation remains a little uncertain. Two features will support rainfall: the main upper low which will track through WestMan & the Interlake and a secondary shortwave that will lift through North Dakota. What begins as a large line of rain will likely focus towards these two features overnight. This means that here in the Red River Valley, amounts will likely be less, or even non-existent, compared to areas to the west/north or south/east. The primary chance for rain will occur between around 9PM to 4AM. In heavier showers, 15-25mm of rain could be seen, while many places will likely see 5-10mm. Again, here in the Valley, we may escape with little precipitation, depending on how things develop. Expect a low near 12°C.

A complex low pressure system will bring precipitation to much of Southern Manitoba on Thursday night.
A complex low pressure system will bring precipitation to much of Southern Manitoba on Thursday night.

Thursday will bring mixed skies with a high once again near 20°C. The day will be otherwise fairly unremarkable. Expect more cloud and a low near 11°C. All in all a pleasant first day of school!

Friday will see another disturbance move across Southern Manitoba, bringing another chance for some scattered showers under mainly cloudy skies. Sunshine should start poking out through the afternoon as skies become more mixed behind the disturbance. Expect a high near 18°C. Skies will clear overnight as temperatures dip to around 9°C. Some lake-effect showers are possible overnight in the lee of both Lake Manitoba and Lake Winnipeg as cool northwest winds roll over the warm lake surface.

Long Range

The weekend is looking fairly dry with variable cloudiness and daytime highs in the upper teens or low twenties. Sunday will likely be windy out of the south. Overnight lows will continue near 10°C.

Winnipeg’s seasonal daytime high is currently 20°C while the seasonal overnight low is 8°C.