Alpine weather forecast

Get it while you can!

Monday will be another gorgeous day in the mountains thanks to a strong ridge of high pressure over northern Quebec. Those venturing out will however want to be prepared for moderate (40-60 km/h) northwest winds in the alpine. The mercury will approach +4C while freezing levels rise close to 2000 metres in the strong April sun making for classic spring skiing conditions once the snow softens. The trough we had mentioned in our previous forecast is still on schedule to cross the Chic-Chocs Monday night. When they descend from the north, these troughs are sometimes referred to as “backdoor cold fronts”. Cloud cover will therefore increase in the late afternoon and a few flurries will pass over the region around midnight leaving a couple of inconsequential centimetres at most. The passing trough will be accompanied by gusty north winds of 50-70 km/h that will ease Tuesday morning.

The sun returns by midday Tuesday, but temperatures will likely remain below the freezing mark making for “dust on crust” type of skiing conditions. Snow surfaces should soften once again on Wednesday as the ridge of high pressure shifts south to lie directly over the region. Alpine temperatures will approach +5C and winds will be nice and light, -a perfect opportunity for a last ski outing perhaps? After a proper freeze close to -10C Wednesday night, cloud returns first thing Thursday ahead of an approaching warm front. The front will be tied to a deep low from Texas en route to the Great Lakes. A few light rain showers can be expected on Thursday with moderate southwest winds and freezing levels climbing to 2000 metres. Conditions get down right ugly by Friday as the storm draws closer and generates south winds of 80-100 km/h, rocketing freezing levels close to 3500 metres, and 20-30 mm of rain… With this being our last outlook of the 2023-24 season, I guess we can say that we’re going out with a weather bang!

Thank you, all our faithful readers and supporters. It was a difficult winter to say the least for snow lovers… Alpine Weather Consultants wishes you all a safe and enjoyable spring and summer!!

Forecast Confidence :

Fairly good confidence overall. The cloud associated with the incoming trough Monday could move in a little earlier mid-afternoon which would moderate the warming. Good confidence for the beautiful spring conditions to return Wednesday. And unfortunately, models are in fairly good agreement with regards to Friday’s storm…