Snow conditions commentary

A bi-weekly commentary of snow conditions based on readings from the B.C. Automated Snow Weather Station (ASWS) network is published during the snow season. This is not the snow bulletin and the values listed are not the official snow basin indices. 

April 15, 2026

Generally, weather conditions were drier and warmer than normal for the first half of April. A cold, low-pressure system brought one significant snow event on April 14-15. Snow stations at lower elevations are already melting, with several sites completely out-of-snow earlier than previously measured. Cool weather is expected for another couple days before a warmer trend predicted for the longer-term forecast. Most weather forecasts show continued dry conditions.

A complete listing of Automated Snow Weather Stations (ASWS), expressed as a percent of the long-term median for each station’s entire period of record, is available in the ASWS Weekly Summary (PDF, 385 KB)*. Hyperlinks to interactive plots are provided for each station within the table.

Note: These values are not the official snow basin indices.

The provincial average across all ASWS sites is 118% of the period-of-record median for April 15, 2026, a slight increase from 115% on April 1. Stations within the Fraser River basin average 112% (April 1: 113%). On average, April 15th represents the peak of the snow accumulation season, with conditions now transitioning toward melt at lower elevations.

A provincial composite graph of automated stations with relatively long-term records (beginning in 1988) is provided below.

^{Based on this composite, the April 1st percentage of median is 112% (April 1st: 117%), placing current conditions at approximately the 71st percentile (April 1st: 82nd percentile).}   

The May 1st, 2026 Snow and Water Supply Bulletin is scheduled to be released May 8th to 12th, 2026, based on data availability. The bulletin will provide a more comprehensive summary of the May 1st snowpack conditions and will include the official Snow Basin Indices.