Snow falls on Cypress, Grouse, Seymour and Whistler Blackcomb mountains (PHOTOS, VIDEOS)
Winter began to descend on British Columbia’s ski hills throughout the Halloween weekend. For Metro Vancouver’s local mountains in the North Shore, the weekend’s blast of winter was the first snow of the season.
Freezing levels plummeted after Halloween, allowing for accumulations of nearly seven centimetres on both Cypress and Grouse mountains and a dusting on Mount Seymour.
Following the dismal 2014-15 ski season, Grouse Mountain invested $500,000 in snowmaking infrastructure to increase its snowmaking capacity by over 40 per cent, enabling concentrated coverage from the top of the Peak to the bottom of the Cut.
Operators on both Cypress and Grouse are keeping a close watch on conditions and will turn on their snowmaking equipment at the first opportunity when temperatures are low enough. Currently, the freezing level is hovering just above the peaks of the North Shore mountains.
Over at Whistler Blackcomb, nearly 30 centimetres of snow has fallen on the mountains. Another dusting of snow could fall later this week when a low pressure system arrives, beginning on Wednesday.
The North Shore mountains normally open for skiing during the first week of December, although it has occasionally opened ahead of schedule. In 2011, Cypress Mountain had its earliest opening when significant snowfall prompted the ski season to begin on November 8.
In 2013, Whistler opened 13 days early on November 16. For the 2015/2016 season, the resort is currently slated for a November 26 opening, but another early start is possible.
Last season, a number of ski hills across the province were forced to close much earlier than usual: It remains to be seen whether there will be a repeat of the same situation for the coming winter. Forecasters are predicting that the El Nino phenomenon that plagued last year’s ski season will continue until spring 2016, and this winter might even be the one of the warmest on record.
Cypress Mountain
Image: Cypress Mountain / Facebook
Image: Cypress Mountain / Facebook
Image: Cypress Mountain / Facebook
Image: Cypress Mountain / Facebook
Well this was unexpected…. Hey there November #northshore #hikingadventures #snowing #cypressmountain #hikebc #pnw #vancityhype #explorebc #pnwlife #getoutside #explorecanada #vancity A photo posted by Mel McCormick (@_.mel__) on
Adventuring up in the mountains ????❄ #beautifulbc #rain #fog #chairlift #snow #adventures #pnwcollective #pnwisbest #pnw #goodcompany #goodvibes #pnwonderland #thatpnwlife #vancitybuzz #raincouver #sundayfunday #pacificnorthwest #explorebc #tourcanada #hikebc A photo posted by Don (@donavenwilkie) on
Grouse Mountain
[vimeo id=”144294906″]
Image: oh_my_gerbils / Flickr
Image: Grouse Mountain
Image: Grouse Mountain
Image: Grouse Mountain
Meanwhile on the mountain #firstsnow #winterlove #mistyfoggymilkymoody #mist_bestshots #seasons2_nio A photo posted by Marina NBN (@lostincreamtea) on
First dusting of snow on the Peak this morning. Keep it coming Mother Nature! #winterlove #grousemountain A photo posted by Grouse Mountain (@grousemountain) on
Mount Seymour
Image: Mount Seymour / Facebook
Whistler Blackcomb
Image: Whistler Blackcomb
Image: Whistler Blackcomb
Image: Whistler Blackcomb
Image: Whistler Blackcomb
Image: Whistler Blackcomb
Image: Stefan Amaral / Flickr
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