Mount Washington Alpine Resort says it’s closed again Thursday due to rain and unseasonably warm temperatures on the Island, which have beaten some longstanding weather records.
The resort initially closed Wednesday due to weather, and on Thursday morning it said it would be closed again, with a “tentative goal” of reopening on Friday, Feb. 2.
All resort activities will be closed Thursday, though the Eagle View Bistro will be open.
The resort adds that single-lane alternating traffic is in place for some areas of the road leading up the mountain due to damage caused by weather.
Earlier this week, a skier on Mount Washington told CHEK News they thought the lodge was losing as much as 10 centimetres of snowpack per day due to the unseasonably warm weather.
The warmth is coming from a system that has triggered a flood watch for all of Vancouver Island, and that has broken daily temperature records across the region all week.
More weather records fall
Two maximum temperature records were tied on Vancouver Island on Wednesday, while five minimum temperature records were surpassed, according to preliminary data from Environment Canada.
In Port Alberni, temperatures reached 12.8°C on Wednesday, tying the previous daily record set nearly 90 years ago in 1935.
Meanwhile, Victoria saw temperatures hit 13.5°C, tying the same record set in 2020.
More impressive, however, was Victoria surpassing its previous minimum temperature record which was set nearly 150 years ago.
On Wednesday, temperatures never dipped below 10.2°C in Victoria, smashing the previous record of 8.9°C set at the same weather station all the way back in 1877.
Qualicum Beach, Port Hardy and Campbell River also all beat their previous daily minimum temperature records, which were all set in 1995.
Qualicum Beach saw temperatures remain above 10.6°C, beating the old record of 7.5°C – Port Hardy set a new record with 9.9°C, beating the previous record of 8.3°C – and Campbell River recorded a minimum temperature of 8.0°C, surpassing the old record of 6.6°C.
The Malahat area also set a new minimum temperature record Wednesday, with the mercury remaining above 8.5°C, beating the old record of 7.8°C set in 1992.
Adam Chan
