You may have thought to yourself that April has been unusually cold in the southern Saskatchewan this year, and as it turns out that's not just your imagination. Environment Canada says all of Saskatchewan has been dealing with temperatures far below normal.

"It certainly is and has been a cold April," said Environment Canada regional meteorologist Terri Lang. "We're running in that area around at least six degrees below average. If you average all of those temperatures and compare them to 30-year averages, we're averaging at least six degrees below those seasonal averages."

According to Lang, normally in April, you can look forward to highs around 12 and lows around minus one. Anyone living in the Moose Jaw area can likely tell you without even glancing at a thermometer that we haven't been getting that. The average overnight low has been minus nine, while temperatures rise to just plus three during the day.

"It had to do with our old friend the polar vortex and where he was sitting sort of right over the central part of Canada," said Lang.

The good news is, Environment Canada predicts light at the end of the tunnel. With warm air coming in from the west coast, Saskatchewan should start to see temperatures warming up to what they call just shy of seasonal.

"Coming with that is going to be some winds, which are sort of always present on the prairies," said Lang.

Late April and early May should be a little more like what we're used to on the prairies with temperatures in the low to mid-teens. But here again, there is a trade-off, as unlike in springtimes passed, there won't be much in the way of rain. Lang said this could lead to more wildfires.

"It's interesting to see what's happening in British Columbia," she said. "They're warming up and they've been quite dry. They're already having wildfires. With that warmth and dryness comes with the chance of grass fires once the snow melts."