Tall Grass Prairie Weather

Winnipeg lies in a continental climate: a combination of cold winters and warm summers, where temperatures have an 80 degree, range between –40degrees Celsius to +40degrees Celsius. This mid-continental weather is influenced by north winds and south winds.

In the winter, the storm track arrives from the northern United States, where the cold arctic weather is pulled onto southern Manitoba. This means a high-pressure system with long periods of cold weather, and blizzards coming from Alberta, where there is little snow, but also little visibility. The snow comes from Colorado, where southern winds are indicators of heavy snowfalls.

In the summer, the storm track comes from Thompson and Churchill, in Northern Manitoba. Moist air is drawn up from the Gulf of Mexico and therefore, thunderstorms, hail, rain and tornadoes become prevalent, when within 15-30 minutes, a heavy downpour can arise, and then, suddenly, calmness.

The Tall Grass Prairie depends on these weather flows, including the moisture from the Gulf of Mexico, the drier-desert-like conditions in Saskatchewan and southeastern Alberta, and the soil conditions emerging from these forecasts to persist.

← previous virtual hike    next virtual hike →

virtual hike index
back to virtual hike index

View a quicktime movie of this virtual hike (requires QuickTime 6)