Dashboard Regions Weather Stations Radar Alerts Glossary
Contact About
Log In

Register for an account and never miss a forecast again!

Register

Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 14th, 2017–Dec 15th, 2017

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

Regions

Northwest Coastal.

Snowfall amounts vary across the region. New storm slabs and dry loose surface avalanches are the name of the game.

Confidence

Moderate - Intensity of incoming weather systems is uncertain on Friday

Weather Forecast

Friday: Cloudy with possible sunny periods. Alpine temperatures near -2 and freezing levels 700 m. Ridgetop winds strong from southwest. Saturday: Snow amounts 20-40 cm with the heavier accumulations in the northern part of the region. Alpine temperatures -2 and freezing levels 800 m. Moderate to strong ridgetop winds from the southwest. Sunday: Snow amount 5-10 cm. Alpine temperatures near -3 and freezing levels 600 m. Check out the Mountain Weather Forecast for more detail.

Avalanche Summary

On Thursday, numerous loose wet avalanches size 1-2 were reported from below treeline elevations. Avalanche activity will likely increase through the forecast period with new rain, snow and wind.I'd also remain suspect of the deep persistent layers. On December 7th and 8th a few deep persistent slabs to size 3 out of steep south facing alpine terrain in the Skeena corridor west of Terrace were reported. Basal facets were thought to be the culprit in these events. The deep persistent slab is something to keep on your radar, especially with additional stress of the new storm snow.

Snowpack Summary

On Thursday the region received another 10-20 mm of rain at most elevations and some new snow at high alpine elevations. With freezing levels dropping the remainder of the precipitation may fall as snow during the forecast period and likely have a poor bond to the old snow surfaces. The alpine and treeline has seen significant wind effect on all aspects including wind slab and wind pressed snow. Below the surface sits a well-settled snowpack overlying several layers of interest. Down 70-100 cm you'll likely find a 5-10 cm thick crust which was buried on November 23 and in some areas, a feathery surface hoar layer down 50-60 cm producing moderate snowpack test results. The widespread crust/facet interface that was buried at the end of October can now be found 100-200 cm deep and exists region wide.

Problems

Storm Slabs

Storm Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer (a slab) of new snow that breaks within new snow or on the old snow surface. Storm-slabs typically last between a few hours and few days (following snowfall). Storm-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.

Deep Persistent Slabs

Deep Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a thick cohesive layer of hard snow (a slab), when the bond breaks between the slab and an underlying persistent weak layer deep in the snowpack. The most common persistent weak layers involved in deep, persistent slabs are depth hoar or facets surrounding a deeply buried crust. Deep Persistent Slabs are typically hard to trigger, are very destructive and dangerous due to the large mass of snow involved, and can persist for months once developed. They are often triggered from areas where the snow is shallow and weak, and are particularly difficult to forecast for and manage.