Over the southern half of the South island, clears skies and frosty conditions seem to have taken hold while much of the rest of the New Zealand is under murky skies with bursts of rain or showers.

Yesterday many over the northern half of the North island experienced some very heavy rain and today Wairarapa, Wellington and across the Cook Strait into Marlborough, heavy rain is more than a possibility with strong, cold southerly winds.

Weather Analyst Richard Green says ‘ Folk in Central Otago and Southland are wondering what all the fuss is about as they are seeing plenty of sunshine but crunchy nights underfoot due to some beaut frosts’.

Today more skifields open in the south, as  good dumps of snow were recorded earlier in the week  which have topped up the main trails.

It seems that the current weather pattern may hold over the bottom parts of the mainland for the next few days thanks largely to a high providing all the sunshine whereas the rest of the country cops much of the wet stuff.