Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 27th, 2025–Mar 28th, 2025

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 possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Regions

Blue River, Clearwater, Premier, Clemina.

The snowpack is untrustworthy after going through dramatic weather fluctuations. Conservative low-angle routes are recommended.

Confidence

Low

Avalanche Summary

Limited reports indicate a natural avalanche cycle over the past few days, with avalanches up to size 2.5. This includes numerous wet loose avalanches and cornice failures, a few storm slabs in alpine terrain, and some persistent slab avalanches near Valemount.

While natural avalanche activity is expected to decrease on Friday, the snowpack remains unstable and untrustworthy.

Snowpack Summary

Convective flurries may deposit 15 to 30 cm of dry snow at upper elevations, but accumulations will be highly variable. This snow will fall on a wet, rain-soaked upper snowpack. A frozen crust will likely form across most terrain, except possibly on north alpine slopes.

The primary weak layer of concern is a surface hoar, facet, and crust layer from early March, buried 50 to 100 cm deep. While its distribution and sensitivity remain uncertain, it has been highly reactive in the neighbouring Monashee regions.

The lower snowpack is likely strong and bonded in most areas.

Weather Summary

Thursday Night

Cloudy with 1 to 4 cm of snow. 20 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

Friday

Cloudy with 1 to 5 cm of snow. 10 km/h northeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C. Freezing level 1500 m.

Saturday

Mix of sun and cloud. Calm. Treeline temperature -5 °C. Freezing level 1300 m.

Sunday

Sunny. Calm. Treeline temperature -5 °C. Freezing level 1300 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

In times of uncertainty, conservative terrain choices are our best defense.
Stick to simple terrain or small features with limited consequence.
Dial back your terrain choices if you are seeing more than 20 cm of new snow.
Avoid travelling on slopes below cornices.

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.

Cornices

Cornice Fall is the release of an overhanging mass of snow that forms as the wind moves snow over a sharp terrain feature, such as a ridge, and deposits snow on the downwind (leeward) side. Cornices range in size from small wind drifts of soft snow to large overhangs of hard snow that are 30 feet (10 meters) or taller. They can break off the terrain suddenly and pull back onto the ridge top and catch people by surprise even on the flat ground above the slope. Even small cornices can have enough mass to be destructive and deadly. Cornice Fall can entrain loose surface snow or trigger slab avalanches.