Christmas is fast approaching, and for many people in the province, that means traveling to visit family, doing last-minute shopping, and generally taking part in all that the holidays have to offer.

Tracking weather conditions is essential for those planning to travel, and with temperatures expected to quickly rise above normal heading into the weekend, Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) meteorologist , Danielle Desjardins, shares some ideas on what next week will bring.

“It’s uncertain at the moment, but some models show quite a significant warming up before Christmas. It will depend on when it happens, but either way it looks like it will be above normal.

“Some models predict temperatures above zero degrees. Moose Jaw may be on the brink, around freezing, but it looks like we’re not going to find ourselves in the deep freeze as Christmas approaches.

She explained that the region is expected to see temperatures well above average of minus six and minus 17 degrees, climbing to between minus two and plus three degrees.

The increase in temperatures is accompanied by the possibility of significant snowfall, explained Desjardins.

“The system we’re looking at, the strongest system before Christmas, would be Wednesday afternoon through Thursday. It looks like it’s an Alberta Clipper crossing southern Saskatchewan.

“A wide band of five to 10 centimeters (of snow), but the highest amount could be a very narrow band of up to 15 to 16 centimeters within that band, including Moose Jaw.”

She encourages those traveling for the holidays to plan accordingly, allowing them enough time to arrive at their destination safely, as the freeze-thaw cycle could make highway travel dangerous.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if somewhere in southern Saskatchewan received snowfall warnings regarding this system’s arrival.”

“There will be a bit of gusty wind, there could be blowing snow also reducing visibility. If you can avoid traveling from Wednesday afternoon to Thursday…or if you can delay it, that would be best.”