Climate change: What we can expect from spring [Video]

Spring officially rolls in Tuesday night and Canadians are eagerly waiting to see what weather the season will bring.

Canada just experienced its warmest winter, on average, in 77 years, according to Environment Canada senior climatologist Dave Phillips.

“This was really the winter that didn’t happen,” Phillips told CP24.

“Every month was warmer than normal.”

The mild winter is due to the El Nino climate pattern that Phillips said is tapering off, but will likely linger into the spring and summer, and make for a smooth transition between seasons.

In Regina, beloved ice cream shop Milky Way welcomed an early start to spring when it opened its windows on Tuesday, just hours before the spring equinox.

“We feel like we represent the first sign of spring,” said owner Anne Boldt, whose annual goal is to open before Easter, but it all depends on the weather.

Typically, the sweet treat on opening day is a reward for surviving a harsh, gruelling winter, …