Avalanche Forecast
Regions: Babine, East Stikine, Hudson Bay, Kispiox, Ningunsaw, North Bulkley, Northwest Inland, South Bulkley, Telkwa, West Stikine.
Don't let storm day fever lure you into consequential terrain.It's a good day to stick to mellow slopes and avoid overhead hazard.
Confidence
Moderate
Avalanche Summary
North of Stewart on Wednesday and Thursday, numerous small dry loose avalanches and several size 1 to 2 slabs were observed in the alpine. With more wind and snow in the forecast, large storm slab avalanches are likely.
No new avalanches have been reported near Smithers, but reports have been extremely limited.
If you head to the backcountry please consider submitting your observations to the Mountain Information Network.
Snowpack Summary
Forecast moderate to strong southwesterly winds are expected to build more reactive slabs on lee north and east facing slopes.
40 to 70 cm of recent storm snow is sitting on top of various snow surfaces. These include small facets and/or surface hoar in sheltered areas, and heavily wind-affected snow in exposed terrain.
Two surface hoar layers can be found in the middle of the snowpack: One down 50 to 70 cm and another down 50 to 110 cm at treeline.
A rain crust from early November is buried 60 to 100 cm deep and seems to be bonding well to overlying layers.
Alpine snow depths vary greatly across the region and from aspect to aspect.
Weather Summary
Saturday Night
Cloudy with 2 to 10 cm of snow. 50 to 60 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7°C.
Sunday
Cloudy with 5 to 15 cm of snow. 60 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3°C.
Monday
Cloudy with light to moderate rain up to treeline and 5 to 10 cm of snow above. 75 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 2°C. Freezing level rising to 1700 m.
Tuesday
Cloudy with moderate to heavy rain. 60 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 4°C. Freezing level rising to 2000 m.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
Terrain and Travel Advice
- Be aware of the potential for larger than expected storm slabs due to buried surface hoar.
- Watch for fresh storm slabs building throughout the day.
- As the storm slab problem worsens, the easy solution is to choose more conservative terrain.
Avalanche Problems
Storm Slabs
Up to 60 cm of storm snow has fallen over the past few days. Buried weak layers below the new snow may create larger than expected avalanches.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: All elevations.
Likelihood: Likely
Expected Size: 1.5 - 3