This weekend's forecast is shaping up to be a good one for activities like Christmas shopping, with a mainly sunny day forecast for Saturday before another system moves into the valley on Sunday.

(STEVE ARSTAD / iNFOnews.ca)

KELOWNA - The official start to winter season is only a week away but temperatures in the Okanagan don’t feel very winter-like.

Environment Canada meteorologist Armel Castellan says the Okanagan will continue to feel the effects of a “parade of storms” that began earlier this week, bringing rain and wind to the valley floor and heavy snow to the mountain passes.

"There will be a break in the stormy weather on Saturday before a new system brings rain and potentially destructive winds on Sunday, with the inclement weather expected to last into the middle or latter part of next week," Castellan says.

Heavy snow can be expected in mountain passes with mostly rain falling on the valley floor.

For today, Dec. 13, the Okanagan can expect clouds with a 60 per cent chance of rain or wet flurries, a high of around 4 Celsius and a south wind at 20 km/h. Temperatures will remain above freezing at 2 C overnight with a 60 per cent chance of showers continuing through the evening.

It will be mainly cloudy tomorrow with a 60 per cent chance of showers in the afternoon and a high of 7 C.  South winds at 30 gusting to 50 km/h by late morning will be followed by periods of rain tomorrow night with a low of 0 C.

Saturday is expected to be sunny with a high of 4 C.

On Sunday the clouds move in again with a 40 per cent chance of showers and a high of 3 C, followed by a 70 per chance of showers overnight and a low of 3 C.

The pattern is similar for Monday, with a 60 per cent chance of showers during the day and a high of 5 C followed by a 70 per cent chance of rain overnight and a low of 2 C.

Normal temperatures at this time of year in the Okanagan are highs around -1 C and lows of about -7 C.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Steve Arstad or call 250-488-3065 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above.

News from © iNFOnews, 2018