Avalanche Forecast
Regions: Coquihalla, Manning, Skagit.
Stormy weather continues !
Avoid avalanche terrain during periods of heavy loading from new snow and wind.
Confidence
High
Avalanche Summary
No new avalanche was reported in the region.
Avalanche activity will increase during this stormy period and a natural cycle is expected.
Thanks for sharing your observations via the MIN if you are going out into the backcountry.
Snowpack Summary
30 cm to 50 cm of new snow is expected by Friday afternoon, forming touchy and widespread slabs. This overlies wind-affected snow in lee terrain at upper elevations and a thin melt-freeze crust on southerly slopes. At lower elevations, the snowpack is expected to be heavy and wet.
A supportive crust is found 60 to 80 cm deep on all aspects except on high, north-facing alpine terrain, and the recent settling snow is bonding well to it.
A weak layer of facets and surface hoar from February is now 90 to 150 cm deep and a layer of facets and surface hoar from late January is 130 to 190 cm deep. No recent notable test results have been seen on these layers.
Weather Summary
Thursday Night
Cloudy with 10 to 20 cm of new snow. 50 to 70 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C. Freezing level 1000 m.
Friday
Cloudy with 20 to 30 cm of new snow. 30 to 50 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C. Freezing level 1000 m.
Saturday
Cloudy with up to 5 cm of new snow. 20 to 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C. Freezing level 1200 m.
Sunday
Cloudy with 5 to 15 cm of new snow. 50 to 70 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature +2 °C. Freezing level 1800 m.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
Terrain and Travel Advice
- Avoid avalanche terrain during periods of heavy snowfall.
- Stick to simple terrain features and be certain your location isn't threatened by overhead hazard.
- Cornice failures could trigger large and destructive avalanches.
Avalanche Problems
Storm Slabs
New snow and wind will create touchy slabs. Storm slab size and sensitivity to triggering will likely increase throughout the day as new snow accumulates.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: All elevations.
Likelihood: Likely - Very Likely
Expected Size: 1 - 2