Regions
Northwest Inland.
Conditions vary throughout the region and observations are limited. If you're heading to deeper snowpack areas in the region, defer to the NW Coast bulletin.
Confidence
Low - Due to the number of field observations
Weather Forecast
Monday: A mix of sun and cloud. The freezing level is near valley bottom and ridge winds are light or moderate from the NW. Tuesday: A mix of sun and cloud. The freezing level is at valley bottom and ridge winds are light or moderate from the SW-SE. Wednesday: Light snow. The freezing level is at valley bottom and winds are moderate from the S-SE.
Avalanche Summary
There are no new reports of avalanches in the region. Widespread whumpfing is still being reported in a few parts of the region.
Snowpack Summary
Generally light amounts of new snow fell in the mountains around Smithers this week, while closer to 50 cm fell in areas further west. Exposed higher elevation slopes may have a dusting of new snow overlying previously wind-affected surfaces. This dusting of snow probably sits on a hard rain crust below 1200-1300 m. There is a notable persistent weakness of buried surface hoar in many places, generally found between 30 and 60 cm deep. Wind and milder temperatures may have helped to promote slab development in the snow overlying this interface. Stay tuned to signs of instability like recent avalanches, whumpfing (reported in a few areas), and shooting cracks. The mid pack was reported to be well settled, although various levels of faceting can be certainly be expected in the lower snowpack.
Problems
Persistent Slabs
Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.
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.