Maple Creek and Val Marie are SK hot spots every year

Jul 12, 2012 | 1:22 AM

If you’ve ever wondered where the hottest spots in Saskatchewan are, the answer is Maple Creek and Val Marie.

Environment Canada chief climatologist David Phillips says those two southwest communities can usually claim the titles of the warmest places in the province.

“If I were in those communities I’d put up a billboard saying welcome to the warmest spot in Saskatchewan,” he commented.

Phillips says Val Marie is consistently warmest in the summer although Maple Creek takes the hot spot honours when the entire year is factored in.

“When you average all the temperatures all year round, you find out that Maple Creek is a tad warmer than Val Marie and is about two and a half degrees warmer than Regina,” he said.

In the case of both towns their proximity to Alberta and the chinook winds put them in the Saskatchewan “banana belt.”

“When you get that air that comes over the Rockies, it is compressed and when you compress air it warms up and that’s what is a chinook,” Phillips explained.

Although we normally associate chinook winds with warm winter weather, he says they do play a role in the summer. After all, Medicine Hat is the fifth warmest city in Canada compared with Regina which is 26th.

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