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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 22nd, 2025–Jan 23rd, 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 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

North Rockies, McBride, Sugarbowl, Kakwa, McGregor, Pine Pass, Renshaw, Robson.

Consider danger HIGH in the alpine if you see 20 cm or more of new snow.

Avoid avalanche terrain during periods of rapid loading from new snow and wind.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

Several small size 1 wind slabs were triggered by riders near the Torpy area on Tuesday. These slabs failed on a slippery crust at treeline. The field team was also able to trigger small slabs on surface hoar and witnessed shooting cracks in the Pine Pass area. See photos below.

Keep posting your observations to the Mountain Information Network!

Snowpack Summary

5-20 cm fell in the region on Monday night. An additional 5 to 20 cm is expected to fall overnight and through Thursday. This new snow combined with strong west though southwest winds is expected to raise the avalanche danger significantly. The highest snow amounts are forecast for the central region - areas like the Torpy and Sugarbowl.

Combined, this new snow is covering a variety of surfaces including: Old wind affected snow, crusts, facets and surface hoar.

We continue to track early January and early December surface hoar and crust layers down 30 to 50 cm and 80 to 130 cm, respectively. Both are considered unlikely to trigger.

Weather Summary

Wednesday Night

Cloudy with 5 to 15 cm of snow, highest amounts for the central region (Torpy and Sugarbowl). 40 to 60 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline high temperature -6 °C.

Thursday

Cloudy with 2 to 10 cm of snow, highest amounts for the central region (Torpy and Sugarbowl). 40 to 50 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline high temperature -8 °C.

Friday

Mostly sunny. 30 to 40 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline high temperature -9 °C.

Saturday

Sunny. 25 to 40 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7°C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Start with conservative terrain and watch for signs of instability.
  • Storm slab size and sensitivity to triggering will likely increase through the day.
  • Avoid avalanche terrain during periods of heavy loading from new snow, wind, or rain.
  • Be aware of the potential for remote triggering and large avalanches 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.