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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 23rd, 2025–Mar 24th, 2025

Alpine
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Treeline
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Below Treeline
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Alpine
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Treeline
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Alpine
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Regions

North Columbia, South Columbia, Esplanade, Jordan, North Selkirk, West Purcell, Badshot-Battle, Central Selkirk, Goat, Gold.

Dangerous avalanche conditions are expected.

Stick to non-avalanche terrain or very small features with limited consequences.

Confidence

High

Avalanche Summary

Storm slab activity in the size 1-2.5 range has been consistently reported at upper elevations across the region over the last few days. Several very large persistent slabs, up to size 3.5, have also been observed, these were largely triggered by cornice failures or icefall.

With considerable new snow/rain in the forecast, we expect to see widespread and large avalanche activity over the coming days.

Snowpack Summary

Up to 55 cm of new snow may accumulate between Sunday and Monday afternoon, with potential rain and wet snow below 1500 m. The new snow will build very reactive new storm slabs.

There is a significant concern for storm slabs to step down to deeper persistent weak layers. These consist of surface hoar, facets, or a crust:

  • Early March layer down 80 - 120 cm. This is the primary persistent layer of concern.

  • Mid-Feb & Late-Jan layers down 100 - 200 cm. The lingering concern for these is in shallow or rocky areas, otherwise, these are unlikely to trigger without a significant load like a cornice failure or storm slab in motion.

Weather Summary

Sunday Night

Cloudy with 15 to 25 cm of snow / possible rain below 1400 m. 35 to 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -1 °C. Freezing level around 1800 m.

Monday

Cloudy with 10 to 20 cm of snow / potential rain below 1500m. 15 to 30 km/h southwest ridgetop winds. Treeline temperature +1 °C. Freezing level rising to 2100 m.

Tuesday

Cloudy with 5 to 10 cm of snow / potential rain below 2400 m. 30 to 40 km/h south ridgetop winds. Treeline temperature +3 °C. Freezing level rising to 2600 m.

Wednesday

A mix of sun and cloud. 20 to 40 km/h southeast ridgetop winds. Treeline temperature +4 °C. Freezing level rising to 3000 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Only the most simple non-avalanche terrain with no overhead hazard is appropriate at this time.
  • Avoid avalanche terrain during periods of heavy loading from new snow, wind, or rain.
  • Storm slab size and sensitivity to triggering will likely increase through the day.
  • Avoid the runout zones of avalanche paths. Avalanches could run full path.

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.

Loose Wet

Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.