General Question

jlm11f's avatar

Is traveling to the British Columbia and Alberta parts of Canada a bad idea right now?

Asked by jlm11f (12413points) May 6th, 2009

My family is planning a trip to tour Vancouver/Whistler/Banff and some other places. We plan on flying to Seattle, renting a car and driving to most of the places in Canada. But my dad spoke to his friend’s son (who lives in Vancouver) and he warned that it will be very cold and that driving near the mountains at this time is not very safe.

But I would like a second opinion about this before I cancel all the work I have done towards planning this trip. Answers from Canadian residents or those that have visited these cities around this time would be most helpful.

We would reach Seattle on May 23rd and leave for Vancouver the next day. The trip is supposed to be for about a week.

Thank you!

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5 Answers

gailcalled's avatar

See PM from me about Vancouver and Whistler.——->

forestGeek's avatar

I drove from Seattle to Banff (via Kamloops, 5 then 1) in April a few years ago and it was fine then, so if you are looking at the end of May, I’d guess you’ll have no problems. The roads up there are good roads as well. It would definitely be smart to get info and weather from sources along the path you plan drive you plan though.

Check the Kamloops and Gondola Cameras too.

So incredibly beautiful up there, you’ll love it!!

jrpowell's avatar

You live in Ohio. We shut down schools in half a inch of snow. It is totally fine now. It is 62 degrees in Portland right now. Vancouver is about the same. Seriously, our worst day is your normal.

The_Compassionate_Heretic's avatar

Vancouver is never unbearably cold like Minnesota.
You can’t put off a trip like this, a trip that could be epic.

One of my favorite vacation moments was fishing off a bridge in the pouring rain near Mt. Shasta Ca. with only a plastic garbage bag as a poncho, with 4 friends all doing the same. We caught 6 fish and cooked them up at a local bar/restaurant called the Basshole. It was glorious.

But I digress… my point is, “Don’t let inclement weather stand in the way of a good time.”

amanderveen's avatar

Well, I was just in Vancouver today, and it’s perfectly fine. I live 900km north of Vancouver, and even though we have much harsher winters here, the roads are completely clear here, too, and the only snow left is out in the bush or on the mountains. You can always check out http://www.drivebc.ca/ if you want current road reportst, too. I’d say it’s perfectly safe to drive right now.

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