Fresh snow brings hope to Okanagan ski resorts as El Niño looms

Posted October 29, 2026 12:24 pm

2 min read

1:35 Snow starting to fall on Okanagan mountains!

Fresh snow brings hope to Okanagan ski resorts as a super El Niño looms.

People across the Okanagan woke up to a welcome sight this week: fresh snow on the surrounding mountains, offering an early taste of winter.

At Big White Ski Resort, skiers are already enjoying the fresh powder, with excitement building ahead of the upcoming season.

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But while the early snowfall is encouraging, questions remain about what the weather will bring in the months ahead.

El Niño, a climate pattern caused by warmer waters in the tropical Pacific Ocean, can influence weather around the world, including across British Columbia. It typically occurs every two to seven years as part of a natural cycle of warming and cooling ocean temperatures in the Pacific.

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With a potentially strong event developing, warmer-than-normal conditions could pose challenges for ski resorts trying to build a solid snowpack.

“We’ve had a couple of light snow years the last couple of years,” said Trevor Hanna, Big White’s vice-president of hospitality.

The impact of El Niño varies by region, but coastal ski resorts could face particular challenges if warmer temperatures push freezing levels higher. When temperatures rise above zero degrees Celsius, precipitation that might otherwise fall as snow can arrive as rain, slowing the formation of the snowpack needed to sustain ski runs.

In the Okanagan, however, locals are hoping freezing levels stay low enough to keep temperatures below zero, allowing snowfall to build the snowpack needed for a successful ski season.

Weather expert Peter Quinlan says sustained cold temperatures are important for building that base.

“We can’t have above normal temperatures because then that snowpack won’t form and in turn we will have a shorter ski season,” Quinlan said.

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For Big White, getting enough snow on the ground is a key step toward opening day. The resort says it needs about 70 to 80 centimetres of snow to safely open some runs, with around 100 centimetres being ideal.

Despite the uncertainty, Hanna says recent conditions have given the resort reason to be optimistic.

Big White is scheduled to open Nov. 26, following a delayed opening last season, when the resort opened about a week later than planned.

“We’re hopefully going to open up on time or early this year and the indications the last few days are positive,” Hanna said.

For now, skiers will be watching the forecast and hoping the recent snowfall is a sign of more winter weather to come. and that temperatures stay cold enough to keep the snow on the mountains.

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