WHISTLER LIFE

The 2016/2017 Winter Prediction

Summer is officially winding down. The biggest festivals of the season have come and gone, the nights are getting shorter, the bears are getting plumper and the temperatures are slowly dropping. With fall on the horizon, it only means winter is not far behind.

As you can imagine, winter is a big deal here in Whistler. The rumors about what kind of winter we are in for begin fluctuating around the middle of the summer; and so far all signs are pointing to us being in store for one of epic proportions! Just how do we know this you might ask? We've gathered up all the evidence as to why we are in for a snow filled season!

National Weather Service

The National Weather Service released it's 2016/2017 long range forecast. They are predicting that we will have weather patterns heavily influenced by La Niña conditions. This means we are in for below average temperatures and average precipitation. The combination is optimal for Mother Nature to make snow!

The Blob

Many of our weather patterns travel in from the Pacific Ocean. Until recently, there has been a warm patch of water in this region affectionately known as "The Blob". Over the past few years, The Blob has contributed to the El Niño conditions, in other words, unseasonably warmer conditions in the north and colder in the south. Well rumour has it, The Blob is beginning to dissipate! The below-average sea surface temperatures that are occurring translates to colder weather or La Niña-  meaning more snow for the northern hemisphere!

Farmer's Almanac

The good o'l Farmer's Almanac has been trusted for it's weather prediction for centuries! The current prediction for November 2016 onwards is as follows: "Winter will be colder than normal, with above-normal precipitation and snowfall. The coldest periods will be in early to mid-January, late January, and late February, with the snowiest periods in mid- and late December, early January, and mid-February." Well, we don't know about you, but all we see when we read this is, SNOW, SNOW and more SNOW!

Seasonal Trends

There has been some talk among the Whistler locals about the upcoming winter season. They say they have seen this type of summer before. In fact, many of them are saying this summer, with it's wet, cool conditions and inability to stay warm resembles that of 2012. For those of you that don't remember, 2012 had one of the highest snow falls of Whistler's history. There is also chatter that Whistler's weather goes through a trend: low snow fall to medium to high. If this is true, we are falling on a high year, implying we are in for big snow fall!

There is so much evidence suggesting that the 2016/2017 winter season is going to be one for the books. La Niña, The Blob, the Farmer's Almanac and the locals chattering has us convinced that the snow will be falling in meters from November to March! Want to be part of it? Book your Whistler vacation now and start dreaming about snowflakes and shredding all that powder!

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