Avalanche Forecast

Moderate - Uncertainty is due to how quickly the snowpack will recover and gain strength.

WEDNESDAY NIGHT - Snow, mixed with rain at times, 15-20 cm / southwest wind, 40-60 km/h / alpine low temperature near -1 / freezing level 1000 m 

THURSDAY -Mainly cloudy / light northwest wind / alpine high temperature near 0 / freezing level 1200 m 

FRIDAY - Snow, mixed with rain, 50 cm or 50 mm of rain / southwest wind, 60-80 km/h / alpine high temperature near 1 / freezing level 1600 m

SATURDAY - Snow, mixed with rain, 75 cm or 75 mm of rain / southwest wind, 70-90 / alpine high temperature near 1 / freezing level 1500 m 

Recent fresh snow with strong winds will mean that the likelihood of avalanches remains elevated on Thursday, in spite of the drier weather. 

There were numerous avalanches up to size 1.5 reported in the North Shore mountains during the storm on Wednesday. It is likely that a widespread natural avalanche cycle occurred throughout the region on Wednesday as well, especially at higher elevations.

Many thanks for all of the great MIN report submissions on Wednesday!

The South Coast received up to 60 cm of new snow with moderate to strong winds between Tuesday evening and Thursday morning. This new snow sits on a crust in many areas, and may also sit on surface hoar in some places. The new snow may take longer than usual to gain strength if these weak layers are present.

Around 100-150 cm of snow now overlies a hard melt-freeze crust up to around 1500 m. The depth of this layer varies greatly due to the wind transport of snow as it fell over the last two storms. It seems to be bonding well with the surrounding snow.

The remainder of the snowpack is well-settled.

• Continue to make conservative terrain choices while the storm snow settles and stabilizes.
• Avoid freshly wind loaded terrain features.
• Be aware of highly variable recent wind loading patterns.