Avalanche Forecast

Fair - Timing of incoming weather systems is uncertain on Wednesday

It looks like the Interior Mountains will see snow for Christmas, as a stream of moisture spreads from North – South Wednesday afternoon and overnight into Thursday. I’m uncertain with timing, however most model runs are agreeing with precipitation amounts.Christmas Day: Cloudy with some sunny breaks. Alpine temperatures -4. Ridgetop winds light from the SW.Thursday: Cloudy. Alpine temperatures -3. Ridgetop winds light-moderate from the SW. Freezing levels rising to 1200 m. Friday: Mix of sun and cloud. Alpine temperatures near -5. Freezing levels 1000 m. Special Notice: Our radar has just picked-up what appears to be a flying sleigh. Our forecasters believe the sleigh belongs to Santa as it is being pulled by at least 8 reindeer. The sleigh is now in the far north of the province at the 2000m elevation and is currently headed south. More information will be posted as it becomes available.

On Tuesday, explosive avalanche control initiated many size 1-1.5 slab avalanches on SE-SW aspects above 1600 m.  On Monday, numerous natural avalanche activity was reported up to size 1.5 on NE-NW aspects above 2000 m. Skier triggered avalanches up to size 1 were  not uncommon.

Up to 15 cm of new snow and strong westerly have winds formed pockets of soft wind slab on lee slopes. A layer of surface hoar is buried 15-20 cm down, and has been reactive with the new snow, mainly causing loose dry sluffing from steeper terrain.A little deeper (between 35 - 50 cm below the surface) you may find a weak layer of surface hoar on sheltered slopes or a crust/facet combo on steep solar aspects. This layer is dormant, and there is not a deep enough overlying slab to create a significant hazard. That said I'd recommend keeping it on the radar, especially as the snow load above increases.In general, snowpack depths are below seasonal average with many slopes below treeline still reported to be below threshold for avalanche activity. A deeper snowpack is likely in the northern part of the region.