Late-August snow dusts two B.C. ski resorts

Two British Columbia ski resorts reported a late-August burst of snow, bringing wintry scenes to mountain terrain while summer recreation remains underway. Panorama Mountain Resort, in the Purcell Mountains, shared images from its mountaintop cameras, and Kicking Horse Mountain Resort in Golden also reported its first snow.

Kicking Horse, about an eight-hour drive from Vancouver, is known for advanced terrain, including five alpine bowls and more than 85 marked inbounds chutes. Panorama, about nine hours from Vancouver, offers more than 4,000 acres of accessible terrain as well as Nordic skiing, snowshoeing, heli-skiing and snowmobiling in winter; mountain biking and hiking are among its summer activities.

The snowfall does not change the broader seasonal outlook cited in the report. OpenSnow, a U.S.-based weather and snow-forecasting company, said a strong El Niño could favour warmer-than-normal temperatures and below-average snowfall across much of B.C., partly because of a more southerly storm track. It cautioned that seasonal patterns can vary, noting some El Niño years, including 2015-16, brought near- or above-average snow to parts of the province.

The report also notes that B.C.’s 2025-26 winter was unusually warm and set temperature records. The early forecast remains an outlook rather than a definitive prediction for individual resorts or regions.