Putting a positive spin on the flurry-infused forecast, a Weather Network meteorologist said it's going to be a great winter for skiers and snowboarders in the Central Interior.
"We're saying goodbye to El Nino and hello to La Nina, although the La Nina is not as strong as what the powerful El Nino was, so it's not going to be our major pattern driver for the season but it's always something to consider," said Kelly Sonnenburg, Weather Network meteorologist.
El Nino, which is what most of B.C. experienced last winter and into the spring and summer, is where there is warmer than normal sea surface temperatures off the west coast of South America, said Sonnenburg. It was extremely warm west of South America and that influenced the overall weather pattern across North America and that ends up playing a part in the trade winds of the tropics, which influences the jetstream that ultimately drives the temperature pattern, explained Sonnenburg.
"We thought we'd be going into a more neutral weather pattern but lately those warmer than normal sea surface temperatures have been cooling," said Sonnenburg.
"So now that water off the west coast of South America is cooler than normal - not significantly cooler so it's not a strong signal but we think it's a fairly weak La Nina that has now set up. What that means for B.C. and Prince George is that we'll likely see our jetstream track right into the coast and it hasn't really influenced the interior of B.C. but it has influenced the west coast. It's been so soggy over these last few weeks with a bunch of storms moving in."
With a La Nina there is usually a more active storm track into the west coast of Canada, she added.
"Through the interior as we head into the harshest part of the winter season it's not terrible - it could be worse - you could be living in Manitoba," laughed Sonnenburg.
"If you're living in B.C. and Alberta chances are you are a fan of skiing and snowboarding. There's been a couple of tough years for the ski season in previous winters so this will be a good winter for snow. Because of that active storm track it's likely there will be above normal amounts of snowfall all through the mountain ranges."
As precipitation increases so will the snow base, she added.
Temperatures are expected to be near normal for much of British Columbia and the extreme northern parts of the province may experience above normal temperatures.
"You can expect to see a few pushes of Arctic air plunge down from the north a few times but it will be very short-lived followed by closer to seasonal temperatures or maybe a couple thaws here and there," said Sonnenburg.
Normal temperatures for Prince George include daytime highs of -3 Celsius or -4 C for December, -4 C for January and -1 C for February.
"So that's what we're expecting and I think we can deal with that," said Sonnenburg.
Average snowfall for December for the Prince George area is about 48 centimetres, for January about 55 cm, and for February about 28 cm for a total of
130 cm for those three months. Higher than normal snowfall is expected for the next three months of winter.
