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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 8th, 2024–Jan 9th, 2024

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

Northwest Inland, Howson, Kispiox, Microwave-Sinclair, Ningunsaw, Ningunsaw, Ningunsaw, North Bulkley, South Bulkley, South Bulkley, South Bulkley, Telkwa.

Soft snow will make for good turns but use caution on steep, open slopes due to buried weak layers.

Back off if you observe any signs of instability, such as avalanches or whumpfs.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

On Saturday near Kispiox, size 1.5 avalanches were triggered by machines on steep cut banks at treeline, 60 and 80 cm deep.

Last week, backcountry users experienced whumpfs in the Babines, Grizzly Plateau & Hudson Bay Mountain.

These avalanches and the whumpfing are suspected to be failures of the buried surface hoar layers detailed in the Snowpack Summary. These observations suggest that humans could trigger avalanches where these layers remain intact.

Snowpack Summary

20 to 40 cm of soft snow exists in areas sheltered from the wind. At upper elevations and exposed areas, this snow could be wind-affected from previous winds. Below 1500 m new snow overlies a melt-freeze crust.

Two or more preserved surface hoar layers can be found buried between 40 cm and 80 cm deep. These layers are most prominent at treeline and below treeline elevations above 1200 m, but they've also been observed in some alpine locations.

Near Ningunsaw, there may be a crust 100 cm deep that could act as a weak layer.

Snowpack depths at treeline vary across the region with generally deeper amounts (~150 cm) in the west and shallower (~80 cm) in the east.

Weather Summary

Monday Night

Cloudy with 5 to 10 cm of snow, southeast alpine wind 20 to 30 km/h, treeline temperature -10 °C.

Tuesday

Mostly cloudy with trace snow, north alpine wind 20 to 30 km/h, treeline temperature -12 ºC. 

Wednesday

Mostly cloudy with trace snow, north alpine wind 10 km/h, treeline temperature -15 ºC. 

Thursday

Mostly sunny with no precipitation, north alpine wind 40 to 50 km/h, treeline temperature -25 ºC. 

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Approach steep open slopes at and below treeline cautiously, buried surface hoar may exist.
  • Look for signs of instability: whumphing, hollow sounds, shooting cracks, and recent avalanches.
  • Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind affected terrain.

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.