CBC Sask. meteorologist, Christy Climenhaga, looks at the winter that never was

It's the winter that wasn't in Regina.

February is a month that is typically filled with sidewalk shovelling and shivering in parkas, but this year there are more rubber boots thanSorelson the street.

So farthis month, there have been sevendays where the temperature sat above the freezing mark. The average, daily high is-1.4C and low-10.3C.

• CBC Saskatchewan welcomes meteorologist Christy Climenhaga

During a typical Saskatchewan winter, the average daily high for February is -6.4C with alow of-17C. That means that so far, temperatures are sitting around 5C above normal and we have made itthrough what is typically the colder half of the month.

December and January were no different this year.Both months averaged between 3C to5C above normal as well, with temperatures only breaking the -30C mark once,onJan. 16.

And, it's not just the temperatures that are abnormal!

There is a noticeable lack of snow around the Queen City. Typically, the snow depth in February is around 15 centimetres(last year there was 14 centimetreson the ground at this time). But, this year there is more grass than snow.

How unusual is a winter like this?

This kind of weather isn't unheard of, although it is rare.

A comparable season was thewinter of2001-2002. That year the average daily high for February was -1.4C and low was -13.5C. January and December were a few degrees above the norm as well.

Despite those averages, the end of January 2002 was on the cooler side with four consecutivedays with temperaturesbelow -30C,a cold spell that we have yet to see this year.

What is causing all of the this balmy weather?

Right now, we are experiencing the impacts ofone of the strongest El Ninos on record.

TheEl Nino's compositionhas kept the cold Arctic air to the North, while most of Saskatchewan is feeling the warmth of a Pacific air mass. This has translated intomilder than normal weather for most of the winter months.

But, will it last?

So far, seasonal forecasts are indicating above average temperatures as we move into spring.

Here's to hoping!