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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 25th, 2024–Mar 26th, 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 possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

Kootenay Boundary, Bonnington, Grohman, Kootenay Pass, Norns, Rossland, South Okanagan, Ymir, Crawford, Moyie, St. Mary, Kokanee, Valhalla.

Use Extra caution as you venture into wind effected terrain.

Recent storm snow may not have bonded yet to the underlying surface.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

A few rider triggered size 1 dry loose avalanches and storm slabs were reported on all aspects at treeline and above over the past couple days.

Snowpack Summary

15 to 25 cm of recent snow may still be available for wind transport. This snow overlies predominantly crusty surfaces, except for northerly aspects at upper elevations. The snow surface will become moist at lower elevations as the freezing level rises.

A weak layer of surface hoar is down 30-60 cm in isolated, sheltered areas at treeline.

A widespread crust with sugary facets above is buried 80-180 cm deep. Steep or convex terrain features with a shallow or thin to thick snowpack at treeline and above are the most likely places to trigger this layer. However, when a thick surface crust is present, human triggering this layer is unlikely.

Weather Summary

Monday Night

Mostly cloudy with around 5 cm of new snow. 15 to 30 km/h west alpine wind. Treeline temperature -4°C.

Tuesday

Mostly cloudy with up to 5 cm of new snow. 15 to 30 km/h west alpine wind. Freezing level rising to 1800 m.

Wednesday

A mix of sun and cloud with trace amounts of new snow. 20 to 40 km/h southwest alpine wind.  Freezing level rising to 1600 m.

Thursday

Cloudy with up to 15 cm of new snow. 20 to 40 km/h southwest alpine wind.  Freezing level rising to 1600 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Use small low consequence slopes to test the bond of the new snow.
  • Avoid steep, rocky, and wind effected areas where triggering slabs is more likely.
  • Recent wind has varied in direction so watch for wind slabs on all aspects.
  • Cornice failure may trigger large avalanches.
  • Back off slopes as the surface becomes moist or wet with rising temperatures.

Problems

Wind Slabs

Wind Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) formed by the wind. Wind typically transports snow from the upwind sides of terrain features and deposits snow on the downwind side. Wind slabs are often smooth and rounded and sometimes sound hollow, and can range from soft to hard. Wind 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.

Persistent Slabs

Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.