There was a noticeable drop in temperatures as Wagga experienced a colder and wetter days.

Technical officer at the Bureau of Meteorology Nigel Smedley said icy Antarctic winds are to blame for the conditions.

“We had a lot of cold outbreaks during winter and southerly winds coming up from Antarctica so they just all combine to bring slightly colder day time temperatures for this winter,” he said.

Wagga was only 5.4 millimetres (mm) off the record winter rainfall of 264mm, which was set in 1991.

Mr Smedley said the record could have been broken in parts of town that received more rainfall but the official reading of 258.6mm has Wagga just shy of it.

Griffith, Narrandera and Yanco all broke their previous records after receiving 185.8mm, 215.2mm and 206.8mm, respectively.

Wagga has received 450.8mm of rain from January 1 to August 31, which is 78mm above average.

Wagga received below average temperatures during the day and warmer winter nights due to cloud cover.

“There was more cloud cover so it’s normally warmer, it traps in the day time heat,” Mr Smedley said.

Mr Smedley said the seasonal outlook from spring from September to the end of November will bring more cold and rainy days.

But the strengthening El Nino system, which is predicted to take affect late spring/early summer, will bring higher day time temperatures and less rain.

Mr Smedley said Wagga could be in for another scorcher of a summer.

Farmer and agronomist with the AGnVET in Mangoplah, Nathan Stoll, said weed control was more difficult because of limited access to paddocks but all the dams are full.

“I don’t think you’d find a farmer anywhere that would complain about the rain,” he said.

“We’re in for a great spring now.

“A couple more rains in spring and we’ll have a bumper year.”