While summer only officially came to a close last weekend, we seem to have skipped fall all together at the higher elevations.
Photo: Big White Big White is covered with a fresh layer of snow Saturday morning.
Friday night and Saturday morning saw significant amounts of snow fall on the mountain passes in the province's Interior. Environment Canada says five to 10 centimetres of snow fell across the Coquihalla Highway and on Allison Pass, while 12 cm covered Pennask Summit on the Okanagan Connector.
A crash on the Coquihalla closed the northbound lanes for several hours Saturday morning.
Another two to five cm of snow is forecast to fall on the Coquihalla, Allison Pass and the Connector throughout Saturday.
Farther into the Interior, an incredible 34 cm fell on Highway 3's Paulson Summit near Castlegar, and residents of nearby Rossland woke to snow covering the downtown.
And for the second night in a row, snow fell at Big White Ski Resort, Silver Star Mountain Resort and Mount Baldy, east of Oliver. While opening day at the local resorts is still two months away, the early snow fall no doubt put a smile on many a skier and boarder's face.
Environment Canada has also issued a special weather statement which is in effect for:
- Coquihalla Highway - Merritt to Kamloops
- Okanagan Connector - Merritt to Kelowna
- Highway 3 - Paulson Summit to Kootenay Pass
- Trans-Canada Highway - Eagle Pass to Rogers Pass
The special weather statement, in fact, covers much of the province and calls for high elevation snow beginning today.
The statement indicates, "a cold airmass is settling in over the B.C. Interior and persisting through the weekend. Lowering freezing levels and unsettled conditions will support the chance of snow over higher elevations."
