Avalanche forecast

Kitimat

Mar 25 – 26, 2026Avalanche Canada
View on map
Archived · expired 6 months ago

Avalanche danger

Fri
Sat
Alpine
3 · Considerable
Treeline
3 · Considerable
Below
1 · Low
Open full map

Highlights

Uncertainty surrounding buried weak layers necessitates conservative terrain choices.

Very large human-triggered avalanches are possible.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible - Likely
    Size
    1–2.5

    Fresh, reactive wind slabs may form on Thursday with new snow and wind. Recent winds have varied in direction, so be cautious of wind-loaded pockets on all aspects.

  • Cornices

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Unlikely - Possible
    Size
    1.5–3

    Cornices are large, looming, and may trigger large persistent slabs on slopes below.

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Unlikely - Possible
    Size
    2–3.5

    A weak layer in the mid-snowpack was triggered remotely on Sunday. It failed below multiple crusts.

    Signs of instability will not be evident, and the only defence is choosing smaller, low-consequence terrain.

Confidence

Moderate

  • We are uncertain due to a limited number of field observations.
  • We are confident that there are persistent slabs in the snowpack, but uncertain about how likely they are to trigger.

Avalanche Summary

A fatal avalanche accident occurred north of Terrace on March 22. Available details can be found here.

In the past few days, a few natural and several skier-triggered wind slabs up to size 2 have occurred. A natural cornice failure pulled a size 3 persistent slab on a NW aspect in the alpine.

Observations in this region are limited, and there's uncertainty about buried weak layers in the upper/mid snowpack. Submit to the MIN and keep your terrain choices conservative.

Snowpack Summary

Cornices are large and looming. Avoid travelling underneath them.

20 to 50 cm of recent snow has been redistributed by northeast shifting to south winds, creating wind slabs on a variety of aspects. Below the recent snow is either a crust or a wind-scoured hard snow surface.

There are multiple persistent weak layers consisting of crust/facets or surface hoar in the top 250 cm of the snowpack. These layers present a low-probability, high-consequence problem.

The lower snowpack is generally well settled and strong.

Weather Summary

Wednesday Night

Mostly cloudy. 2 to 5 cm of snow. 30 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

Thursday

Cloudy. 4 to 15 cm of snow. 40 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

Friday

Mostly cloudy. 5 to 10 cm of snow. 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

Saturday

Mix of sun and clouds. 1 to 4 cm of snow. 20 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Use conservative route selection and resist venturing into complex terrain.
  • Avoid steep, rocky, and wind-affected areas where triggering slabs is more likely.
  • Be aware of the potential for large, destructive avalanches due to deeply buried weak layers.
  • Cornice failures could trigger large and destructive avalanches.

Regions covered