Your El Niño obsession? It's all about Kelowna.
Good morning from the Okanagan — the lake is calm, the vines are growing, and we have things to discuss. So, you're hearing all the chatter about El Niño, right? Everyone's wondering if we're in for a "super El Niño" and what that means for the weather. Okay, but here's the thing nobody talks about: when you live in Kelowna, El Niño isn't just about whether you can golf in February. It's about how much snow Big White gets, which determines half our winter economy. It’s about the lake levels, which affect everything from our beaches at City Park to the docks down in the Mission. And let's be real, a warmer, drier winter, which El Niño often brings, can set us up for a brutal smoke season when summer hits. We've seen what that's like, and it's not just an inconvenience for your afternoon bike ride on the Kettle Valley Rail Trail; it impacts air quality for weeks and threatens our homes and vineyards.
Kelowna is the most beautiful city in Canada that is actively trying to figure out if it can survive being discovered, and these climate patterns are a huge part of that survival. We just had our first snow-free winter in Vancouver in 43 years, and that kind of trend is not something we can ignore up here. It's not just about the short-term impact on our fruit crops or the $18 rosé from Summerland; it's about the long game, about whether the orchards and vineyards that define us here in Kelowna can keep thriving, or if they'll be replaced by more condos because the climate makes farming too difficult. This isn't just a weather pattern; it's about the future of our home.
Good morning from the Okanagan — the lake is calm, the vines are growing, and we have things to discuss.
Nina and the crew dig into this every morning — catch it live at mornings.live.