Avalanche Forecast

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.

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.

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.

• 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.