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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 19th, 2024–Dec 20th, 2024

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

North Columbia, South Columbia, Glacier, Esplanade, Jordan, North Monashee, North Selkirk, Dogtooth, West Purcell, Badshot-Battle, Central Selkirk, Goat, Gold, Retallack, Whatshan.

It is uncertain how quickly the new snow will stabilize.

Watch for shooting cracks and whumpfs, these are clear signs it needs more time.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

It's expected that the natural cycle is largely over, but human-triggered avalanches are likely on Thursday. No avalanches have been reported, so check Avalanche.ca for MIN reports.

On Wednesday, there was a widespread avalanche cycle. With natural and human triggered avalanches reported up to size 3.

A few large persistent slab avalanches were also reported. Failing on east and north aspects between 1800 and 2300 m south of Shelter Bay in the Selkirks and Purcells.

Snowpack Summary

Another 5 to 10 cm of snow Thursday night brings the storm total to around 30-50 cm. This soft snow is being redistributed by west southwest wind in the alpine and open treeline.

A surface hoar layer formed in early December is now buried 50 to 90 cm and is most prevalent between 1700 to 2200 m. So far, this layer has only produced avalanches in the southeast of this region.

Weather Summary

Thursday Night

Cloudy with 5 to 15 cm. 35 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C.

Friday

Mostly cloudy. 20 to 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C.

Saturday

A mix of sun and cloud with up to 5 cm of snow ending in the morning. 30 to 40 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C, freezing level 1800 m.

Sunday

A mix of sun and cloud with 5 cm of snow ending in the morning. 20 to 30 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Keep your guard up as storm slabs may remain sensitive to human triggering.
  • Continue to make conservative terrain choices while the storm snow settles and stabilizes.
  • Make observations and continually assess conditions as you travel.

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.