Regional Summaries

ACMG Mountain Conditions Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains. November 24, 2022.

Winter is coming, in more ways than one.

WEATHER
It looks like we may get a break from the dry conditions of the past few weeks. Forecasts for this weekend show significant snowfalls across most regions. At treeline elevations, expect 15-30 cm of snow along the Great Divide in the Rockies. In the Columbias snowfall amounts will vary significantly, from 15 cm (Nelson area and the Purcells), to 30 cm (Selkirks) or even 50 cm (Monashees and Cariboos).

ACMG Mountain Conditions Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains. Nov 11, 2022

What happened? Just two weeks ago it was sunny and warm; now it is full-on winter. The Rockies have just come out of -20C or colder temperatures which was a major shock to the system. On the avalanche front, the Parks Canada and Kananaskis forecasting agencies have started publishing bulletins as conditions change (www.avalanche.ca). The skiing has reportedly been variable as one would expect, and plenty of people are getting good data points to verify that!

ACMG Mountain Conditions Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains. November 3, 2022

Snow up high, little down low. In both the Rockies and Columbias you will find more rocks and sticks than snowflakes up to treeline. Above this, you will find a mixed bag of snow depths, but it is surely winter up there and avalanche hazard should be on people’s minds, as well as hitting rocks.

ACMG Mountain Conditions Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains, October 28, 2022

The snow is slowly starting to accumulate up high and a few smears of ice are starting to form in cold, shaded areas, but we are still waiting for winter to really begin.

The snowline in the Banff and Kananaskis areas dropped down to about 1800 m today. The valley bottoms remain relatively snow free, but still harbor some snow from last week's storms in shaded areas. A similar story is found in the Southern Rockies and throughout most of the Columbia mountains with current snow levels down into treeline.

ACMG Mountain Conditions Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains October 15th, 2022

We all knew it was going to happen eventually. The long dry Autumn has turned towards winter and there is snow down low in the Southern Rockies, around treeline in the Columbia Mountains at Kicking Horse, Panorama and RMR and a report of 15 cms at Rogers Pass. Not many observations available at this time of year but without getting too technical we can probably forecast that it is slippery and chilly in a lot of places.

ACMG Mountain Conditions Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains. October 13, 2022.

The drought continues, with no end in sight. Expect dry conditions on all objectives with snow, ice, and glacier routes continuing to have rough conditions.

WEATHER
No precipitation is forecast over the next week for anywhere in the Rockies or Columbias. There should be overnight freezes in all areas. This stunning fall will continue and it is hard to complain, except that it hasn't really rained since...June?!? I can't really remember.

CONDITIONS
Dry. That means great hiking, mountain biking, and rock climbing once it warms up mid-morning.

ACMG Mountain Conditions Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains. October 7, 2022

Yet another beautiful weekend for mountain travel lies ahead in the Rockies and Columbia Mountains. All the ranges are extremely dry with the precipitation from a couple's weeks ago having melted off everything but the highest North faces. Glacier travel is mostly back to early September conditions.

ACMG Mountain Conditions Summary for the Rockies and Columbia Mountains. Sept 30, 2022

The Rocky and Columbia mountains are extremely dry for this time of year. There are some residual snow patches on glaciers, but for the most part, they are bare ice which will make your ankles scream. Only a trace of the snow from a week ago is left on North aspects. Exposed rock is sitting on many of the steep ice faces from a long summer of heat. Recent MCR posts from the Bugaboo/Snowpatch col and flights across the Rockies show that it is as dry as it gets.

MCR Rockies/Columbia Mountains Summary

The general feel is that fall is in the air and conditions are changing, make sure to add a headlamp and down jacket into your pack, as the days are getting shorter and cooler!

Weather,

Unstable weather over the last few days has brought precipitation and thunderstorms to many areas. Expect a small amount of snow in the high alpine, ~2800m and above. Cooler temps will stay with us through the weekend with freezing lines staying in the 2800m range.

Hazards,

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