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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 20th, 2024–Apr 21st, 2024

Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

Vancouver Island, East Island, North Island, South Island, West Island.

Assess for new slabs before exposing yourself to high-consequence terrain.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

We haven't received any recent reports of avalanche activity. Saturday night's storm will change conditions though. Riders could be able to trigger storm and wind slab avalanches in steep terrain at treeline and alpine elevations, particularly for areas that see more than 20 cm of snow accumulation.

Please consider sharing your observations to the Mountain Information Network.

Snowpack Summary

Snow is forecast Saturday night above 1000 m, which will build over a wettened snow surface and hard melt-freeze crust. Storm slabs could build within this new snow. The snow will come with strong southwest wind, potentially forming wind slabs in lee terrain features.

The remainder of the snowpack is strong.

There is insufficient snow to form avalanches for most below treeline locations.

Weather Summary

Saturday Night

Cloudy with 15 to 30 cm of snow and the most expected on the west side of the island. 60 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C. Freezing level 1000 m.

Sunday

Mostly cloudy with 1 to 3 cm of snow. 30 to 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -1 °C. Freezing level 1100 m.

Monday

Mostly clear skies. 10 km/h northeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 3 °C. Freezing level rising to 1700 m.

Tuesday

Mostly cloudy. 20 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 3 °C. Freezing level 1600 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Watch for fresh storm slabs building throughout the day.
  • Carefully evaluate steep lines for wind slabs.
  • Avoid terrain traps such as gullies and cliffs where the consequence of any avalanche could be serious.

Problems

Storm Slabs

Storm Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer (a slab) of new snow that breaks within new snow or on the old snow surface. Storm-slabs typically last between a few hours and few days (following snowfall). Storm-slabs that form over a persistent weak layer (surface hoar, depth hoar, or near-surface facets) may be termed Persistent Slabs or may develop into Persistent Slabs.