British Columbia Daily Snow

Heads up, there may be fresher snow! Read the latest British Columbia Daily Snow

By Alan Smith, Meteorologist Posted 1 year ago January 30, 2023

Light snow Mon-Wed, stronger storm possible Friday

Summary

A series of weak storms will impact BC from Mon to Wed with light snow favoring the Northern Powder Highway (including Revy) while southernmost areas will struggle to see any snow. Northern areas including Shames & Powder King will pick up heavier snow. A stronger storm is likely to impact a larger portion of Southern BC on Thursday night & Friday.

Short Term Forecast

I'm so sorry for not getting a forecast out as planned yesterday. I had a long day of travel with multiple flight delays and slow to nonexistant airport/airplane internet, only to return home and discover the power and internet had been out in my neighborhood all day. Sorry again! 

Recent Snow Totals:

The Thursday-Saturday storm cycle resulted in light to moderate snowfall totals across most of the Interior with spotty and minimal accumulations across the Coast Range. However, a localized band of heavy snow set up across the Southeast Interior on Friday night right over Kimberley, who received 43 cm of snow!

Most areas began to dry out on Saturday, but the lingering band of snow produced 10 cm of accumulation at Red Mountain, but did not make it far enough west for Big White and Apex to get in on the action. 

Here are the storm snowfall totals from Thursday AM through Sunday AM:

  • 43 cm (17") - Kimberley
  • 28 cm (11") - Silver Star
  • 16 cm (6") - Sun Peaks
  • 14 cm (6") - Red Mountain
  • 14 cm (6") - Apex
  • 12 cm (5") - Manning Park
  • 10 cm (4") - Whitewater
  • 10 cm (4") - Panorama
  • 10 cm (4") - Sasquatch Mountain
  • 8 cm (3") - Revelstoke
  • 8 cm (3") - Fernie
  • 8 cm (3") - Hudson Bay Mountain
  • 6 cm (2") - Kicking Horse
  • 6 cm (2") - Big White
  • 2 cm (1") - Powder King
  • 2 cm (1") - Cypress Mountain
  • 1 cm (0.5") - Grouse Mountain
  • 1 cm (0.5") - Mt. Seymour

Forecast for Monday to Tuesday:

Arctic air has settled into place across Southern BC over the past couple of days with cold temperatures and clear skies. This trend will continue through the day on Monday, then we will see a return to more active weather along with gradually moderating temperature from Monday night on.

Two minor disturbances will move through from the west/northwest during this period with light snow showers mainly across the Interior of BC, while the Coast Range of Southwest BC will see little to no snow (flurries at best).

Snowfall on Monday night and Tuesday will favor northern portions of the Powder Highway and Okanagan regions, where I'm expecting 5-10 cm (2-4") of snow at Sun Peaks, Silver Star, and Revelstoke. Kicking Horse will be right on the edge and could pick up anywhere from a trace to 10 cm (trace-4").

Further south, I'm only expecting a trace to 5 cm (trace-2") for the remainder of the Interior.

Central and Northern BC will see heavier snow during this period, including the Bella Coola region of the Coast Range and the Northern Rockies. Powder King should pick up 15-30 cm (6-12") of new snow on Monday-Tuesday while Shames Mountain will see 10-20 cm (4-8").

Forecast for Wednesday:

Another storm will arrive from the west/northwest on Wednesday and will bring another round of light snow to the Northern Powder Highway and Northern Okanagan region (Sun Peaks, Silver Star, Revy, Kicking Horse favored), while the Coast Range resorts of Southwest BC and the Southern Powder Highway will be right on the edge between light snow and no snow.

Shames Mountain and Powder King could see another good round of snow as well, with the deepest totals expected south of these areas across the Bella Coola region of the Coast Range and into portions of the Northern Rockies and Cariboos.

Forecast for Thursday to Friday:

Most areas should see a break during the day on Thursday. The exceptions will be Northern BC, especially Shames Mountain, as well as Vancouer Island including Mt. Washington where moderate to heavy snow is possible.

A stronger storm will arrive from the southwest on Thursday night and Friday. This storm is likely to impact a larger portion of Southern BC including both the Coast Range and the Interior. 

For now, I'm expecting moderate to locally heavy snowfall across much of Southern BC.

Snow levels are currently projected to rise to 700-1,100 meters (2.5-3.5k feet) across the Coast Range during this storm, which means the lower portion of Whistler and the North Shore resorts could see rain at times while mid to upper slopes would stay all-snow based on these projections.

Snow levels should stay below base areas across the Interior, but temperatures will be milder compared to early in the week.

As always, we'll get more dialed on the details in terms of timing, snow totals, and snow levels moving forward. If you're looking to plan ahead, I would circle Friday morning for the best chance to ski fresh snow in the Coast Range, and Friday afternoon or Saturday morning for the Interior.

Extended Forecast

Another storm is possible this weekend (Feb 4th-5th) but it has trended a little further south, so I'm expecting a weaker hit overall with the best chance of snow across Southwest BC and also southern portions of the Interior (Big White, Red, Whitewater, Fernie). We'll still need to keep an eye on any northward/southward trends in the storm track moving forward.

Next week, it looks like an active pattern will continue from about February 6th-10th with frequent snow chances expected.

Beyond February 10th, I'm seeing some signs of a weakening storm track across Canada with storms having the tendency to split/fall apart upon reaching the Coast. But we're still far enough out that this could change. 

Thanks so much for reading! Next update on Tuesday (Jan 31).

ALAN SMITH

About Our Forecaster

Alan Smith

Meteorologist

Alan Smith received a B.S. in Meteorology from Metropolitan State University of Denver and has been working in the private sector since 2013. When he’s not watching the weather from the office, Alan loves to spend time outdoors skiing, hiking, and mountain biking, and of course keeping an eye on the sky for weather changes while recreating.

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