Below: Lake Louise under unsettled skies Monday morning. Louise has received 7cm over the past 48-hours. They will be adding more Tuesday and Wednesday.

 

Monday: A mix of sun and clouds at Nakiska and Castle otherwise mainly cloudy skies for the SkiBig3 resorts north to Marmot. Isolated afternoon flurries possible for the resorts north of Banff. Breezy day in the mountains with W/SW gusts 40 – 50 kph on exposed ridges and passes. Mild alpine temps with highs of -3C to -6C at 2200m. 

Tuesday: A zonal flow aloft will transport a series of Pacific disturbances into the Alberta Rockies a bit earlier than initially forecasted. Periods of light snow now look to develop during the early morning hours at the resorts between Banff and Jasper with the storm spreading southward through the day as far south as Castle Mountain. Heaviest snowfall looks to fall along the Divide where Sunshine and Lake Louise could see anywhere between 10 and 20cm through Wednesday morning. West facing slopes could see even deeper amounts. Bookends Marmot Basin (north), and Castle Mountain (south), could pick up 5 – 10cm with slight chances of up to 15cm. Light amounts up to 5cm at Norquay and Nakiska into Wednesday morning. Continued above average temps on Tuesday with alpine highs -4C to -6C. Moderate SW winds with gusts 30 – 45 kph across the ridgetops. 

Wednesday: As the trough of low-pressure exits the Rockies on Wednesday, residual moisture will keep a 25 – 30% chance of widespread flurries continuing through the day across the range. Additional light accumulations up to 3cm are possible for most resorts, with around 5cm possible along the Divide at Sunshine and Castle. Mountain temps cool a few degrees back into the seasonal range. Light to moderate W/SW winds. 

Thursday and Friday: A ridge of high-pressure looks to amplify on Thursday delivering a mostly sunny day across the Alberta Rockies with seasonal temps and generally light SW winds. The ridge weakens on Friday as a Pacific trough edges eastward towards the Rockies. Friday will offer a mix of sun and clouds becoming mainly cloudy during the afternoon hours as the next system moves closer to the region. Temps will be slightly warmer on Friday with alpine highs -4C to -6C. Light SW winds.    

Below: High resolution Canadian model for snowfall from noon (mtn) Monday 2/6 until 5am (mtn) Wed 2/8. Shades of pink (around 25cm) are forecasted by this model to spill over the Divide into the Alberta resorts Banff north to Jasper. 

 

A Pacific low-pressure system is depicted to move into the Rockies next Saturday 2/11 bringing chances of widespread light accumulations across the range. A transient ridge of high-pressure then builds in for Sunday before yet another Pacific trough moves in for Monday 2/13 and Tuesday 2/14 next week bringing back light accumulating snowfall. Weekend temps look to continue above average with temps dipping back to seasonal levels early next week with the passage of the Pacific trough. 

Below: The Euro model for the period Friday 2/10 through Wednesday 2/15 depicts a series of Pacific lows moving in and out of the Rockies through Tuesday 2/14 followed by a building ridge of high-pressure.

Thanks for tuning in. Next update, Wednesday 2/8. 

Powder Out, 

Bob