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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 27th, 2012–Dec 28th, 2012

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 unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

South Coast.

Confidence

Good

Weather Forecast

Friday: Light SW winds. Freezing level near 600 m. Light snow.Saturday: Light NW winds. Freezing level near 600 m. Light snow.Sunday: Light winds. Freezing level at valley bottom. Cloudy.

Avalanche Summary

Several glide avalanches up to size 2 have been observed around the Duffey Lake highway on smooth south-facing slopes. This type of avalanche is usually preceded by a crack opening up on the slope, so avoiding them should be straight-forward. Just don’t linger on or under slopes sporting glide cracks. No other avalanches have been reported.

Snowpack Summary

Recently, wind slabs have developed lee to both SE and down-valley winds. Apart from a couple of strengthening storm snow weaknesses, the snowpack is generally well-settled. Surface hoar layers buried in the upper/mid snowpack appear to be gaining strength but still exhibit hard, sudden results in snowpack tests. Near the base of the snowpack, a crust/facet layer appears to be inactive. A thick layer of facets making up the bottom the snowpack was observed on a north aspect near Wendy Thompson Hut. Although unlikely, triggering an avalanche on a basal weakness may be possible from thin snowpack areas or with a very heavy trigger.

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.