Skiing the Cascade Volcanoes: Snowfall and Snowdepth 2005-2006

Skiing the Cascade Volcanoes
Amar Andalkar's Ski Mountaineering and Climbing Site

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Cascade Snowfall and Snowdepth 2005-2006

2005-2006 Snow Season Summary (last updated April 2006)

See the main Cascade Snowfall and Snowdepth page for historical snowpack info.
Detailed Snow Season Reports: 2005-2006, 2004-2005, 2003-2004, 2002-2003; see also Previous Seasons, Normals & Info, and Cascades El Niño / La Niña
NEW: Historical NWAC Snowdepth Data & Plots and Paradise & Crater Lake Snowfall/Snowdepth Plots

Season Summary as of March 1, 2006: The 2005-2006 season got off to a great start with cold temperatures and heavy snowfall from late October into mid-November, building a snowpack well above normal and helping to erase memories of last year's misery. Most ski areas in southwestern BC, the WA Cascades, and Mount Hood opened in early November, their earliest openings since 1994 and for some areas their earliest ever. By November 15, snowdepths were 2-6 ft at many mountain locations in BC, WA, and OR, about 200-300% or more of normal. High pressure brought largely clear skies for the next ten days, settling and shrinking the snowpack, but then another cycle of very cold storms brought several more feet of snow through December 4, maintaining snowdepths well above normal even at lower elevations.
Another strong high pressure system then brought two more weeks of sunshine, further settling the snowpack and diminishing snowdepths to below normal in BC, WA, northern CA by December 15, while Oregon remained somewhat above normal. When precipitation finally returned on Dec 18, it was warm, too warm and too wet. Heavy rainfall battered the Northwest through Christmas Day, sending the snowpack throughout the Cascade Range plummeting down the drain towards 50% of normal or less. The situation looked bleak, almost hopeless.
Unexpectedly, on Dec 26 the weather pattern shifted to a cool and wet westerly flow, with the jet stream aimed squarely at the Pacific NW and carrying an unrelenting series of powerful storms. This excellent situation would remain in place with only a few minor interruptions for the next 6 weeks. The final week of 2005 brought 3-5 ft of new snow throughout the mountains of the Pacific NW, with another 2-4 ft during the first days of 2006. A brief warmup brought heavy rain on Jan 6-7, but cool weather quickly returned and an intense storm cycle dumped 4-9 ft of snow over the next week, capped by 111" in 7 days at Mt Baker. The subsequent storms were less sustained, but still dropped 2-5 ft atop the rapidly deepening snowpack during the third week of January. A brief high-pressure window brought 2 days of sun on Jan 24-25, but then the storms returned with renewed vigor, burying the mountains under 6-12 ft of additional snow over the next 11 days. By February 1, snowdepths had built to 9-15 ft (roughly 130-180% of normal) at most measurement sites in the Cascades, topped by well over 200" at Chinook Pass. At least one site has set a new record for February 1 snowdepth, Fourmile Lake near Mount McLoughlin with 105", over 200% of normal. During January 2006, Whistler set a new record for snowfall in any calendar month with 185", while the 269" at Mount Baker Ski Area was their 2nd-most ever for a month behind Feb 1999. The 239" at Mount Rainier Paradise and the 173" at Snoqualmie Pass were the most in any January since 1972 and 1971 respectively.
The intense storm cycle and heavy snowfall continued into February, with 2-5 more ft of snow falling throughout the Cascades before strong high pressure returned on February 5. The West Coast basked in sunshine for the nest week while the jet stream aimed due north into south-central Alaska, dropping over 11 ft of snowfall in only 7 days at sites such as Alyeska Ski Resort. A weak system finally brought a few inches of snow to the Cascades on Feb 13-15, with isolated amounts of nearly 10" at Snoqualmie Pass and Mount Hood. Overall during the first half of the month, snowdepths have generally decreased 5-20" at most sites in the Cascades, but as of February 15 the snowpack remains at 100-150% of normal throughout the range, except on Lassen Peak where the snowpack is well below normal especially at mid-elevations.
As the second half of February began, high pressure and a strong northerly flow around an Omega block delivered an Arctic blast to much of the WA and OR Cascades, with temps dropping as low as -10 °F at many mountain sites, the coldest in about 10 years. Meanwhile, the southern half of the Omega block (a cutoff low off the CA coast) brought 1-2 ft of champagne powder (3-5% density) to the CA Cascades and Sierra Nevada. An overall moist weather pattern returned in late February, starting with a strong frontal system that dropped 2-3 ft of snow on the WA Cascades and 1 ft on Mount Hood on Feb 23-24, followed by a quick system which brought 1-2 ft to the BC Cascades and Mount Baker on Feb 26-27. A powerful system closing out the month aimed southward at CA, dumping 2-3 ft of snow on the southern OR and CA Cascades and Sierra Nevada. Another pair of storm systems ushering in March are likely to dump 2-4 ft more of snow on that region.
As of March 1, the snowpack is roughly 100-150% normal throughout the length of the Cascades, except for a few scattered sites which are somewhat below normal. Snowdepths at mid-elevations near treeline are generally 10-15 ft throughout the range, topped by Chinook Pass which is reporting over 200". This is in sharp contrast to last year, when a series of very warm and wet Pineapple Expresses interspersed with lengthy periods of dryness had devastated the snowpack in BC, WA, and OR. By March 1, 2005, the snowpack at most sites in southwest BC, WA, and northern OR had shrunk to record lows, only 0-30% of normal with barely a few feet of snow and extensive patches of bare ground on sunny aspects. Southern OR was slightly better off at 40-50% of normal, while only northern CA remained near normal or slightly above (see 2004-2005 season report). What a relief this year is, it's great to finally enjoy a season which is above-average throughout the entire Cascade Range.

See the semimonthly reports below for a detailed discussion of the season . . .

The graph and table below summarize snowdepths at 10 important sites throughout the entire Cascade Range during the 2005-2006 season (record lows are shown in red in the table). These high-snowdepth sites are all located about 1000 ft below timberline and are representative of conditions in the subalpine regions on favored slopes (not rain-shadowed areas). Place your mouse over the links below to compare the same plot for previous seasons and with normal values for the period of record (this only works if you have a JavaScript-enabled browser). An archive of the semimonthly snowdepth stats and commentaries during the current season can be found below the graph.

Mouse-over links to change season graph, click to load season report: 2002-2003 | 2003-2004 | 2004-2005 | 2005-2006 | Normals

---- BRITISH COLUMBIA ----

---------- WASHINGTON ----------

-------------- OREGON --------------

------ CALIFORNIA ------

Mt Cayley
Squamish R.
4400 ft

Whistler Mtn
Ski Area
5400 ft

Mt Baker
Ski Area
4200 ft

Mt Rainier
Paradise
5400 ft

Mt St Helens
Swift Creek
3800 ft

Mt Hood
Timberline
6000 ft

Mt Bachelor
Ski Area
6300 ft

Crater Lake
Park HQ
6400 ft

Mt Shasta
Old Ski Bowl
7600 ft

Lassen Peak
Lake Helen
8200 ft

01 Nov 2005

23"

15"

20"

—

15 Nov 2005

47"

24"

69"

48"

47"

40"

34"

30"

15"

18"

01 Dec 2005

37"

34"

67"

60"

55"

50"

54"

36"

30"

15 Dec 2005

37"

30"

59"

58"

61"

65"

63"

53"

40"

35"

01 Jan 2006

63"

54"

66"

91"

57"

90"

101"

90"

108"

104"

15 Jan 2006

100"

99"

134"

135"

96"

120"

114"

134"

126"

01 Feb 2006

139"

107"

177"

172"

147"

177"

160"

150"

161"

15 Feb 2006

132"

96"

172"

162"

142"

164"

155"

129"

139"

138"

01 Mar 2006

137"

104"

188"

179"

140"

176"

157"

147"

165"

176"

15 Mar 2006

154"

114"

199"

201"

190"

203"

171"

168"

205"

210"

01 Apr 2006

—

117"

192"

200"

190"

197"

168"

171"

249"

238"

15 Apr 2006

—

01 May 2006

—

15 May 2006

—

01 Jun 2006

—

15 Jun 2006

—

01 Jul 2006

—

Seasonal Max

171"

119"

210"

215"

204"

208"

177"

172"

249"

238"

Date of Max

08 Mar
2006

07 Mar
2006

10 Mar
2006

22 Mar
2006

12 Mar
2006

10 Mar
2006

17 Mar
2006

01 Apr
2006

Semimonthly Snowfall and Snowdepth Reports for the 2005-2006 Season

The tables below show semimonthly snowfall and snowdepth info at 47 measurement sites along the entire length of the Cascade Range, primarily on or near the Cascade volcanoes. The frequency of data collection varies at these sites, from hourly automated telemetry to manual daily or monthly measurements. Note that multiple sites or data sources are found at several of these locations, and their data values typically differ slightly from each other. The codes used below for Data Frequency read as follows: H = Hourly Snowdepth Telemetry, H* = Hourly Snow-Water Telemetry (snowdepth estimated), D = Daily Manual Snowdepth, M = Monthly Manual Snowdepth (Jan 1 - June 1 or less), A = April 1 Manual Snowdepth Only. See Information about Cascade Snowdepth Measurement Sites for more details about these sites including normal snowdepths throughout the season.
The following measurement sites have been added to this list for the 2005-2006 season. The NRCS continues its program of adding snowdepth gauges to existing SNOTEL sites, including several very useful sites on or near the Cascade volcanoes this season.

State / Prov.	Measurement Site Location	Elevation	Data Source and Frequency		Information and Notes
WA	Lyman Lake (NE of Glacier Peak)	5900 ft	NRCS	H	Snowdepth gauge installed on existing SNOTEL site, added to list
WA	Mt Saint Helens, Sheep Canyon (W side)	4000 ft	NRCS	H	Snowdepth gauge installed on existing SNOTEL site, added to list
OR	Diamond Lake (west of Mt Thielsen)	5300 ft	NRCS	H	Snowdepth gauge installed on existing SNOTEL site (in 2004), added to list
OR	Pelican Butte, Cold Springs (NW side)	6100 ft	NRCS	H	Snowdepth gauge installed on existing SNOTEL site, added to list