After a couple of weeks of mostly sunny, mostly warm and mostly dry days – the Deep South is shifting gears into more Autumn-like weather and less summer-like as a cooler change moves towards New Zealand.

A recent series of highs – which stopped the large sub-tropical low in the north from tracking south – has brought stunning weather to much of the South Island, including this weekend for Warbirds over Wanaka.

But a cold blast hitting southern Australia with snow and gales is moving towards New Zealand.

While it will change shape a great deal before arriving here, the south west flow will see temperatures tumble this week for some – ahead of another much larger high moving our way for the weekend.  Some snow is also expected on the ranges.

Highs in Southland will fall to the low teens, with just 13 to 15 degrees expected across the region for the next few days with plenty of cloud and a few showers.  Central Otago will be more protected from the cloud and rain but the cooler air will still penetrate. Daytime highs will only make the low to mid teens while overnight lows will drop close to zero for Central Otago.

The south west flow will reach the North Island around Thursday and Friday – knocking temperatures back only by a few few degrees and bringing brief rain and showers as the front passes through.

WeatherWatch.co.nz says a large high is predicted to move on to the country this weekend which should mean average daytime temperatures and cooler overnight lows – and another great weekend outdoors for many.

– Homepage image / file, Zelda Wynn

– WeatherWatch.co.nz