Avalanche Forecast

Issued: Dec 16th, 2023 4:00PM

The alpine rating is moderate, the treeline rating is low, and the below treeline rating is low. Known problems include Persistent Slabs.

Avalanche Canada mbender, Avalanche Canada

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Lots of early season hazards exist due to a thin snowpack. Read our Forecasters' Blog for more details on a persistent slab problem found in the region.

Summary

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

There is no recent avalanche activity to report.

Snowpack Summary

A dusting of new snow buried a recently formed surface hoar layer and sun crust. A prominent rain crust is found 30 to 60 cm deep. While the dry snow above the crust is bonding well, some areas have large weak surface hoar crystals beneath the crust. It may be possible to trigger this surface hoar layer in areas where the crust is thinner and less supportive, with higher-elevation terrain being the most suspect. Typical snowpack depths at treeline are 70 to 110 cm, and taper rapidly below treeline.

Weather Summary

Friday Night

Partly cloudy with no precipitation, alpine wind southwest 20-30 km/h, treeline temperature -6 °C.

Saturday

Mix of sun and cloud with no precipitation, alpine wind southwest and west 15-25 km/h, treeline temperature -1 °C.

Monday

Mix of sun and cloud with no precipitation, alpine wind southwest 15-30 km/h, treeline temperature -3 °C with a possible temperature inversion.

Tuesday

Cloudy with 3-5 cm of snow, alpine wind south 20-40 km/h, treeline temperature -1°C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Carefully evaluate bigger terrain features on an individual basis before committing to them.
  • Surface hoar distribution is highly variable. Avoid generalizing your observations.
  • Early season avalanches at any elevation have the potential to be particularly dangerous due to obstacles that are exposed or just below the surface.

Problems

Persistent Slabs

An icon showing Persistent Slabs

Large terrain features at upper elevations should be approached with caution. Preserved surface hoar may be found 30 to 60 cm deep and triggerable in areas where it is not capped by a thick rain crust.

Aspects: All aspects.

Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.

Likelihood

Unlikely - Possible

Expected Size

1.5 - 2.5

Valid until: Dec 17th, 2023 4:00PM