Recent Snow Totals:

Snowfall on Monday and Tuesday ranged from 6-15 cm (2-6") across western parts of the Interior, including the Okanagan resorts as well as Revelstoke, while eastern portions of the Interior received little to no snow. Manning Park also picked up 16 cm (6") of snow while most Coast Range resorts received little to no snow.

Forecast for Wednesday

Mostly dry conditions can be expected, except across Northeast BC where a weak disturbance will result in light snow showers over the Cariboos, Northern Rockies, and Powder King. Warm air has also moved into Northern BC and rain is possible at the base of Powder King as a result.

Forecast for Thursday to Saturday

The storm cycle during this period will favor the Interior of BC and to some extent the eastern slopes of the Coast Range. Most of Coastal BC as well as Northern BC (Shames to Powder King) will see little to no snow in this pattern.

Coastal BC:

This storm cycle will largely miss the Coast Range as the storm track will be too far north and east. Whistler and the North Shore will be lucky to see anything more than flurries. The exception will be the eastern slopes, including Manning Park and the Coquihalla Pass area. Sasquatch Mountain may get in on the action as well.

Light snow showers will be possible across these eastern slope areas during the day on Thursday, then the main round will move through on Thursday night with snow totals ranging from 5-15 cm (2-6") at Manning Park and Coquihalla Pass and 2-10 cm (1-4") at Sasquatch Mountain. Snow levels will range from 600-900 meters (2-3k).

A lull in the pattern is expected on Friday aside from some lingering snow showers in the morning. On Saturday, an arctic front will work its way into the area from the east/northeast and we could see another band of snow showers develop across the eastern slopes of the Coast Range.

Manning Park could pick up another 5-15 cm (2-6") on Saturday with little to no snow further west toward Whistler and the North Shore Mountains.

Interior BC:

Light snow showers will begin during the day on Thursday, mainly across northern and western portions of the Interior (Revy, Rogers Pass, and the Okanagan region). Snow levels will actually start out relatively high during this early activity, ranging from 900-1,200 meters (3-4k) from Sun Peaks to Revelstoke, and 1,200-1,500 meters (4-5k feet) further south around Big White.

Snowfall will pick up across the Okanagan region and norther/western Powder Highway on Thursday night with snow levels falling to 600-900 meters (2-3k feet) overnight as a cold front moves through. Winds aloft will be out of the northwest during this event.

Snow totals through Thursday night will range from 5-20 cm (2-8") across the western and northern regions, including Sun Peaks, Silver Star, Apex, Big White, Revelstoke, and Rogers Pass, with lighter/spottier amounts south and east.

On Friday, snow shower activity will be focused mainly across the Powder Highway region while the Okanagan region begins to dry out with only light/spotty snowfall.

The main feature to watch during this period will be an arctic cold front moving from northeast to southwest across the Interior, which will interact with moisture to result in a band of locally heavy snowfall "somewhere" over the Interior on Friday night.

Exactly where this band sets up will determine who sees light/moderate snowfall on Friday and who sees heavy snowfall. Right now, it looks like the heavy band will set up somewhere in Southeast BC in the vicinity of Fernie, Kimberley, Panorama, and Whitewater.

Areas that end up getting snowfall from this band could end up with 10-25 cm (4-10") of snow on Friday-Friday night with isolated higher amounts possible, while areas outside of the band should receive 2-15 cm (1-6") of new snow on Friday-Friday night.

On Saturday, the arctic front will work its way into South Central and Southwest BC with enough moisture remaining along the frontal boundary to result in more snow, likely in the vicinity of Apex and Big White and possibly Red Mountain, while the rest of the Interior starts to dry out with an arctic airmass taking hold.

For now, I'm expecting Big White and Apex to pick up an additional 5-15 cm (2-6") on Saturday, while Red Mountain could also pick up 2-10 cm (1-4").

Here is my storm total snow forecast for Southern BC. This is a tricky storm given that multiple features are in place that could result in large differences between light and heavy snowfall. There is boom potential for all areas (more snow than forecast) but targeting exactly where the locally heavier totals will occur is a challenge.

I also highlighted which day will likely offer the best conditions for each area as some areas will see their heaviest snowfall on Thursday night/Friday morning, and others on Friday night.

Temperatures will be trending colder throughout this event on Friday and Friday night (and on Saturday for areas that get snow), resulting in a transition to dry and powdery snowfall with high snow-liquid ratios. 

Winds will be strong out of the northwest on Thursday and Friday for upper mountain areas, especially above treeline, then will become lighter on Saturday.

Outlook for Sunday (Jan 30) to Tuesday (Feb 1):

Cold and dry conditions will take hold throughout BC during this period behind Friday-Saturday's arctic cold front. It's possible some areas could see light snow showers/flurries at some point during this period, but I'm not expecting any meaningful accumulations.

Bundle up if hitting the slopes during this period, especially across the Interior.

Outlook for February 2nd-8th:

I'm expecting a more active pattern to set up during this period with a west/southwest flow developing, which should transport Pacific moisture into the region. The dominant storm track has also shifted a bit northward compared to prior outlooks, which would put Southern BC in better position to see stronger and more frequent storms.

Long range models have still been struggling with consistency in this period, so we'll see how things look moving forward, but there are some reasons for optimism. 

Also, temperatures should gradually moderate over this period but remain on the cooler side of average with relatively low snow levels expected more often than not. 

Thanks so much for reading! Next update on Friday (Jan 27).

ALAN SMITH