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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 5th, 2025–Mar 6th, 2025

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

Regions

Northwest Coastal, Northwest Inland, Boundary, Stewart, Kispiox, Ningunsaw, Ningunsaw, Ningunsaw.

While natural activity has tapered, human triggering of buried weak layers remains likely - and high consequence.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

Persistent slabs have been reactive on the February weak layer, predominantly in the alpine. Over the weekend and into Monday, a natural avalanche cycle included persistent slabs up to size 3 and explosive control work produced results up to size 3.5. On Tuesday, a skier remotely triggered a size 2.5 from 100 m away.

Looking forward, human triggering of large slabs remains a significant concern.

Snowpack Summary

Snow at upper elevations has been wind-affected. Cornices are large and fragile. South-facing slopes and low elevations hold a surface crust.

Facets, surface hoar and/or a crust from mid February are buried 50 to 100 cm deep. This layer has produced large natural and human-triggered avalanches this week.

Deeper in the snowpack, a facet/crust layer from early December can be found from 100 to 300 cm deep. This layer appears to be dormant for now but we're keeping it on the radar as an isolated concern which may reactivate in the spring.

Weather Summary

Wednesday night

Mostly cloudy with 1 to 5 cm of snow. 20 to 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperatures -5 °C. Freezing level 500 m.

Thursday

Mostly cloudy 1 to 5 cm of snow. 30 to 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperatures -3 °C. Freezing level 1000 m.

Friday

Cloudy with 10 to 20 cm of snow. 40 to 60 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperatures -2 °C. Freezing level 1200 m.

Saturday

Partly cloudy with 1 to 5 cm of snow. 20 to 30 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperatures -5 °C. Freezing level 800 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Be mindful that deep instabilities are still present and have produced recent large avalanches.
  • Remote triggering is a concern; avoid terrain where triggering overhead slopes is possible.
  • Use extra caution around cornices: they are large, fragile, and can trigger slabs on slopes below.
  • Stick to simple terrain or small features with limited consequence.

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.