Mountain Snowpack

Eight snow courses and two automated snow pillow readings were taken at the end of February in the Oldman River basin, with values ranging from 89 to 123% of average. Generally the snowpack is above average in the St. Mary, Waterton, and Belly River basins and above average to much above average in the Oldman River basin, with the exception of one station, where it is below average. (Table 2).

Sixteen snow courses and two automated snow pillow readings were taken near the end of February in the Bow River basin, with values ranging from 83 to 128% of average (Table 3). In the Spray, Kananaskis, and Highwood River basins conditions are generally average, while in the Elbow River basin snowpack is below average to average, and upstream of Banff, snow accumulation is below average at 8 of 10 locations.

Four snow course measurements were taken at the end of February in the Red Deer River basin, with values ranging from 81 to 92% of average. Snow accumulations are generally below average for this time of year, with the exception of one station, where it is near average. (Table 4).

Three snow courses were measured in the North Saskatchewan River basin at the end of February. Two stations below 4400 feet elevation show the snow water equivalent to range from 116 to 118% of average, which is generally average to above average. The higher elevation station (6300ft) had a value of 92% of average which is near average.

In the Athabasca River basin three snow courses were taken and values ranged from 94 to 135% of average, which is generally average to above average for this time of year. One lower elevationstation, at Hinton, recorded above average to much above average snowpack, while two locations in the mountains have average snow accumulations.

Snowpack in the upper Peace River basin in British Columbia is generally above average, as reported in the B.C. Snowpack and Water Supply Outlook http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/rfc/river_forecast/bulletin.htm.

At twelve snow course sites, real-time snow accumulation can be monitored using snow pillows. Snow pillows can be viewed by choosing any mountainous southern basin, and snow data, in the two drop down menus at:

Snow water equivalent values on the snow pillow may or may not match the snow course value at a particular location. While snow pillow data is very valuable information, the quantity of snow on the pillow is only representative of the accumulation at that specific spot. A snow course survey is measured at numerous spots and provides a more representative value of snow in the area. In some locations, there can be considerable difference between the snow pillow and snow course values. Factors such as wind and exposure of the site can cause the snow pillow values to be significantly different from the snow course survey. The snow pillow graphs on our website show the daily average snow water equivalent. The monthly snow survey is the average of all measurements conducted within five days of the end of the month. Also, where snow pillow and snow course measurements are available for the same site, snow pillow records tend to be much shorter (10-15 years) in length compared to the snow course sites. As a result, the difference in the average value between the snow pillow and the snow course can be attributed to snow water equivalent being derived two different ways (physically measured compared to an instrument reading), site location and length of data record. In some cases, the values can deviate by 10-20%. Therefore, while snow pillows are excellent for analyzing trends and for monitoring accumulation between snow surveys, snow course values should always be used when considering the quantity of snow at a particular location as they best represent that area.

Click here to see a map of snow course locations