British Columbia Conditions

[takeahike46er]

Here’s to hoping the triple dip La Niña delivers the goods to the region this season!

In the meantime, the snowpack is a little anemic compared to last year at this time, especially at and below tree line.

Trail counts at Whistler are reflective of the early season conditions. Thankfully, ski patrol is pretty liberal about letting you access the terrain just across the boundary lines this time of year, so the “skiable” terrain is far larger than the current stats would indicate. You just have to tread cautiously and accept the risks it brings.

Overall, conditions are pretty good at the moment! We just need a good storm or two to bury the sharks and fill things in.

 

[westcoastben]

I dream about getting back up to Whistler as an adult. Having driven from Seattle to Alaska in ‘05 has me confident in saying that British Columbia is probably the most beautiful place I’ve ever been to.

 

[TheGreatAbyss]

nvm

 

[takeahike46er]

Some fluffy pow and sunshine in the Coq! Could use a bit more snow below treeline, but coverage up high is good.

The Coquihalla area gets a lot of snow, but it is of the drier variety—similar to the Okanagan region to the east. With lots of fun zones easily accessible from the “highway it’s a popular area to tour (note all the tracks). I’ll be spending more time here for sure!

 

[takeahike46er]

December has been a rough month in SW BC. We had a stretch of brutally cold weather—uncomfortable for skiing but good for snow conditions. However, that also meant little to no precip, as much of the moisture headed south of the border. When the storm door finally opened again, temps soared in the alpine, with rain falling at times all the way to the summit of Blackcomb.

Thankfully, we picked up some snow at the end of the month, enough to bury much of the rain-soaked snowpack and reset the mountain until the next storm cycle begins later this week.

Coverage in the alpine is decent and would make most skiers happy. Though, after a couple winters here, I can see base depths are lower than normal as many of my favorite lines aren’t close to being filled in yet. In fact, according to patrol, the Showcase T-Bar needs another 15ft of snow before it can even operate.

Still, with so many acres to explore, there’s almost always some good skiing to be found.

 

[takeahike46er]

When I moved to BC two years ago, it was an opportunity to reconnect with some of the things I loved about growing up at the doorstep of the Adirondacks—things like camping, hiking and scrambling. It was also a time to try things that were incompatible with the city life I adopted as an adult. Backcountry skiing was chief among those activities, and this is my first season of getting out regularly.

One of the spots backcountry skiers flock to near the Vancouver area is Round Mountain. Located at the end of Howe Sound in Squamish, it absolutely gets dumped on with snow. Though it’s a great destination for newer backcountry skiers like myself, it’s also a good spot to do laps when avalanche conditions are high.

On a nice day, Round Mountain can be swarming with skiers and snowshoers alike. I happened to catch it on Sunday in the middle of a storm cycle, when wet snow and low visibility kept the crowds to a minimum. That meant lots of untracked snow, even if the laps were short at 500’ of vert.

While coverage at treeline and above is getting better with recent storms, I narrowly avoided falling into a creek bed while riding down to the Red Heather hut. More snow would be nice, particularly at these lower elevations. Another Pineapple Express is on the way—so that won’t help—but more seasonal freezing levels look to return in the longer term.

 

[takeahike46er]

With freezing levels dropping to sea level this weekend, one didn’t need to travel far from Vancouver to find good snow on Sunday. The north shore ski areas reported 16” overnight.

Avalanche danger was high, so we kept to the mellow tree lines on Hollyburn adjacent to the Cypress ski area.

Cypress access road

Beautiful trees

Fun day!

 

[D.B. Cooper]

Wow! The pictures in the trees!!

 

[JTG]

With freezing levels dropping to sea level this weekend, one didn’t need to travel far from Vancouver to find good snow on Sunday. The north shore ski areas reported 16” overnight.

Avalanche danger was high, so we kept to the mellow tree lines on Hollyburn adjacent to the Cypress ski area.

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Cypress access road

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Beautiful trees

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Fun day!

Sweet!

 

[takeahike46er]

The Sea To Sky gondola, 45 minutes from downtown Vancouver, is a popular tourist destination for sightseeing.

But the gondola also provides easier access to the alpine and notable summits such as Sky Pilot and Mount Habrich—shaving off just under 3000’ versus climbing from sea level. Thus, it is quite popular with backcountry skiers, mountaineers, etc.

The Sky Pilot zone offers a ton of couloirs, bowls and chutes in primarily north facing slopes. The terrain is complex so it is helpful to have someone in your group who is familiar with the area.

Sky Pilot on the left with the Copilot on the right

Warm temps and rising freezing levels the past several days meant spring skiing conditions in all but the highest elevations where the snow was still powdery. The snow became quite heavy as we descended and was a lot of work. Still, a great day to be in the mountains!

The Copilot

Mount Habrich with the mighty Mount Garibaldi standing behind