Each year Winnipeg gets a deep freeze, some years it lasts a few days, others a few weeks, but it is something you can count on dealing with at some point over the winter months. Usually it hits at the tail end of January or the beginning of February and it is by far the worst part of winter.
While there are other major cities in Canada that are cold, the other prairie cities and to a slightly lesser extent Quebec, Winnipeg does hold the distinction of having the coldest winters. On days like today it’s not hard to see why.
While other cities are basking in temperatures as warm as +2 (St. Johns) most are sitting somewhere in the teens (Edmonton, Charlottetown, Whitehorse even) Winnipeg is currently -30 celsius, with wind chill it feel like -43.
That is actually as cold as it sounds and unless you’ve experienced it first-hand you are not going to be able to grasp quite how that feels.
The downside-
· With wind chill heading outside today is absolutely numbing. Exposed skin will develop frost-bite in under 2 minutes and let’s face it no matter how hard you try some skin will show…..and you WILL feel it.
· Just breathing on a day like today is difficult. Your lungs do NOT want to breathe in air so much colder than your natural body temperature and so particularly the first few moments outside will literally leave you gasping.
· Getting dressed properly will take a minimum of five minutes, ten if you are under the age of 13 (note that teenagers are even worse and may never actually dress appropriately).
· You will still be cold no matter how many layers you have or how well you are dressed.
· Eye glasses. You have two options, either you keep your nose poked out of your scarf and risk frost bite to avoid fogging up or you can pull up the scarf, take off your glasses and walk blind.
· If Manitoba Hydro were to ever have major issues half of Winnipeg is going to freeze to death.
· Black ice forms and Winnipeg drivers are already scary enough.
· Chapped lips, ha, try chapped everything!
· IT IS MINUS FREAKING 40!!
Not great selling points for experiencing these temperatures yourself I know.
Here however are the “good” points.
· No mosquitoes, yes this is my first point and trust me it is the big one (as are our mosquitoes in summer).
· It’s a dry cold and yes a dry cold really does not feel as bad as humid cold.
· It’s warm inside and the desire to share body heat encourages cuddling.
· It makes you appreciate the heat of summer
Ok that’s all I got. A regular winter day has quite a few more good points but to be honest there really is nothing good about the experience of an arctic deep freeze.
I’m going to go hug one of the radiators now…….
