Avalanche Forecast
Regions: Howson, Kitimat, Nass, Northwest Coastal, Rupert, Seven Sisters, Shames, Stewart, West Stikine.
Carefully assess new snow amounts and avoid avalanche terrain if more than 25cm of new snow is found. There is some uncertainty in how far inland this storm will push.
Confidence
High
Avalanche Summary
No notable avalanches were reported on Friday.
We expect that a natural storm slab cycle will take place starting early Sunday morning.
Snowpack Summary
New storm and wind slabs will form throughout Saturday night and Sunday. This will also add to the already large cornices.
Up to 30cm of previous storm snow sits over a layer of small surface hoar, facets and wind effected surfaces. Below treeline a new crust could exist up to 1000m.
A layer of facets and a crust from late January can be found down 100 to 200cm. Below this layer the snowpack is generally well settled and right side up.
Weather Summary
Saturday Night
Stormy with up to 35cm of new snow expected. Moderate to strong westerly winds and a high of -4 at 1500m.
Sunday
Stormy with up to 10cm of new snow expected. Moderate to strong westerly winds and a high of -4 at 1500m.
Monday
Stormy with up to 15cm of new snow expected. Light to moderate southerly winds and a high of -5 at 1500m.
Tuesday
A mix of sun and cloud with no new snow expected. Moderate northerly wind and a high of -12 at 1500m.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
Terrain and Travel Advice
- Avoid all avalanche terrain during periods of heavy snowfall.
- Be careful to keep storm day fever from luring you out into bigger terrain features.
- Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind affected terrain.
- Avoid exposure to slopes that have cornices overhead.
Avalanche Problems
Storm Slabs
New snow and wind will form reactive storm and wind slabs at all elevations and aspects.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: All elevations.
Likelihood: Very Likely
Expected Size: 2 - 3