PERDUE, Sask. – Unusually warm temperatures are helping some seasonal shops drum up extra business before the snow flies in Saskatchewan. After closing for the season in late October, Perdue Oasis Golf Course reopened this week to give golfers another chance to play during the warm stretch. “We are booked right full until Sunday,” said Andrew Wilkinson, one of the course operators. “It is a different thing for everybody. Nobody has ever really golfed much in November.” Temperatures in parts of Saskatchewan are about 10 C warmer than seasonal highs, according to Environment Canada meteorologist Brian Proctor. “Very warm air has flooded across much of the western Prairies … and we are not seeing the warm air dissipating,” Proctor said. The forecast shows the milder conditions are likely to last until at least the beginning of December. Spencer Dyck, who has never golfed this late in the year, booked a tee time with his grandfather to take in unseasonably warm fall. “We do not normally get weather like this, so I’m happy to be out here and hit some balls around,” Dyck told CTV News. Dozens are expected to make the trip out to the fairways for the eight-day extension on the golf season. Many are driving hours just to tee off. “It’s phenomenal,” said James Carriere, who drove two hours from Prince Albert. “Most years I’m unloading my skidoo and this year, I’m unloading the golf cart.” The unexpected boost in business will help cover off-season building costs, according to Wilkinson. “The power bills never stop coming,” he said. “It helps out a bit for that.” The mild, dry conditions could be a preview of what is coming this winter. A powerful El Nino weather pattern is expected to produce warmer temperatures and less precipitation in the winter months. “The magnitude of the warming that we are seeing in portions of the Pacific is somewhat unprecedented from an El Nino point of view,” Proctor said. “It looks really significant and really strong.” While golfers are enjoying the warm temperatures now, Proctor said the forecast could spell bad news for areas in need of moisture. “It likely means a reduced snowpack, especially in the boreal forest,” he said. “That can mean really significant impacts on agriculture and also significant impacts on forest fires for next year.” Despite the above-seasonal forecast, Proctor says winter in Saskatchewan will still be cold and temperatures will dip well below freezing. “Enjoy (the warmth) while you can, because it is not going to last forever,” he said.
