It will be a perfect summer for backyard barbecues and picnics in the park across much of Canada, according to predictions from one prominent national forecaster.

But the warm, dry conditions that socially starved Canadians crave as the spread of COVID-19 slows and the pace of vaccination accelerates will also allow forest fires to thrive, warned Chris Scott, chief meteorologist at The Weather Network.

B次元官网网址淭his summer, we think weB次元官网网址檒l have a few more of those nice days, so if that means getting to the beach or going to the park, camping, this is a good looking summer across most of the country,B次元官网网址� he said as the network released its summer forecast Tuesday.

B次元官网网址淗owever, there is a downside for areas that are expected to see a hot and dry summer.B次元官网网址�

The ever-present risk of forest fires in British ColumbiaB次元官网网址檚 Interior is higher than normal, he said, with higher temperatures and less precipitation than the average.

Across the Rockies, he said, Alberta is expected to see above normal temperatures, with less precipitation than average in the south and central parts of the province and higher-than-normal precipitation in the north.

Things could also get worrisome in the agricultural regions of Saskatchewan and Manitoba, he said.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e really concerned here about going into a drought,B次元官网网址� Scott said. B次元官网网址淏次元官网网址�June is really going to set the table for us and tell us what will happen for the rest of the summer.B次元官网网址�

June is typically the wettest month in this part of Canada, he noted, and if it rains in June then things may turn out OK.

B次元官网网址淏ut our worry is that June goes drier than normal, and then we kind of get into this self-fulfilling prophecy where things just keep on being dried through the growing season,B次元官网网址� Scott said.

Northern Manitoba could see temperatures dipping slightly below normal, as could parts of northern Ontario.

Northern Ontario could also see higher-than-normal precipitation levels, in contrast to other parts of the province, where precipitation is expected to be below or around average.

B次元官网网址淪outhern Ontario looks pretty good overall,B次元官网网址� Scott said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 got a little bit of everything for everyone in that we will get our heat B次元官网网址� weB次元官网网址檒l get our really hot days B次元官网网址� but thereB次元官网网址檒l be a few refreshing days thrown in as well.B次元官网网址�

Scott said the situation will likely be similar in Quebec.

B次元官网网址淢ontreal may be just a tad cooler than last year, but Montreal had a top five summer last year in terms of high temperatures,B次元官网网址� he said.

Farther east, meanwhile, the Atlantic provinces can expect above normal temperatures.

Newfoundland and Labrador can anticipate average levels of rain, Scott said, but the Maritime provinces are due to get more precipitation than normal.

B次元官网网址淲e donB次元官网网址檛 think itB次元官网网址檚 a washout of a summer at all. But we do think that when it rains, it will really pour thanks to a warm Atlantic Ocean and an above normal Atlantic hurricane season,B次元官网网址� he said, adding that itB次元官网网址檚 too soon to say whether the region will be hit by any tropical storms.

In the North, precipitation levels will be near normal, Scott predicted.

Temperatures should be above normal in Yukon and the western Northwest Territories, while theyB次元官网网址檙e expected to be near normal farther east in the region, through Nunavut.

West of the Hudson Bay, Scott said, temperatures are expected to dip below the average.

B次元官网网址淥verall, I think a lot of good weather here for people that like to get outdoors,B次元官网网址� he said.

B次元官网网址淭he real concern, though, is the lack of precipitation that is possible in some of the big agricultural regions of the country. And that is going to be a huge story to follow in the next few weeks to see how that leads into the core of summer.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址擭icole Thompson, The Canadian Press