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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 17th, 2026–Feb 18th, 2026

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

Rossland, South Okanagan, Shuswap, North Okanagan.

Adjust your travel plans based on local conditions.

Storm snow may need time to bond with old snow surfaces, step back into conservative terrain at signs of instability.

Confidence

Moderate

  • We are uncertain due to a limited number of field observations.
  • We are uncertain about how persistent slabs will react to the forecast weather.

Avalanche Summary

On Sunday and Monday, avalanches up to size 1 were reported from human and explosive triggers. While most failed within the recent storm snow or on the recently buried crust, one stepped down to the late January surface hoar and crust.

This slab avalanche was reported from Crowfoot riding area west of Sicamous on Saturday. We suspect it also ran one of the buried crust layers in the upper snowpack.

Snowpack Summary

Recent storm totals have reached 10-25 cm, sitting over a widespread layer of surface hoar and a crust.

Observations from the Shuswap area indicate two crust/facet layers buried within the top 40 cm of the snowpack may be reactive. While widespread, these layers haven’t caused concern elsewhere, yet.

The remainder of the snowpack is dense and well bonded, containing many more crusts.

Weather Summary

Tuesday Night
Partly cloudy. 1 cm of snow. 10 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.

Wednesday
Mix of sun and clouds. 10 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -12 °C.

Thursday
Mix of sun and clouds. 2 cm of snow. 10 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -14 °C.

Friday
Sunny. 20 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -12 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Continue to make conservative terrain choices while the storm snow settles and stabilizes.
  • Be careful as you transition into wind-affected terrain.
  • Be aware of the potential for larger than expected storm slabs due to buried surface hoar.

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.

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.