Avalanche Forecast
Regions: East Island, North Island, South Island, Vancouver Island, West Island.
Windslab avalanches may be possible on the highest peaks.
Elsewhere, wet avalanches are possible where the rain hasn't washed away the snowpack.
Confidence
Moderate
Avalanche Summary
No new avalanches were reported on Wednesday before 4 pm.
Snowpack Summary
In general, rain has saturated the snowpack to mountain top. It may be possible to find new, dry snow in the highest elevation alpine terrain. Below treeline, the snowpack has melted out almost entirely, leaving it below threshold for avalanches.
Weather Summary
Wednesday Night
Cloudy. 5-10 mm of rain expected below 1500 m (20 mm or more on the west island). Strong south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature around 2 °C.
Thursday
Cloudy. 5-10 cm of snow expected above 1100 m. Strong south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature around 1 °C.
Friday
Mostly cloudy. Light rain/snow expected. Moderate to strong south ridgetop wind. Freezing level around 1250 m.
Saturday
Mostly cloudy. Light rain/snow expected. Light northwest ridgetop wind. Freezing level around 1100 m.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
Terrain and Travel Advice
- The more the snow feels like a slurpy, the more likely loose wet avalanches will become.
- Avoid terrain traps such as gullies and cliffs where the consequence of any avalanche could be serious.
- Avoid lee and cross loaded slopes in the alpine.
Avalanche Problems
Loose Wet
High water content and low cohesion in the snowpack means loose wet avalanches can be expected in steep terrain.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: All elevations.
Likelihood: Possible
Expected Size: 1 - 2
Wind Slabs
At very high elevations, where enough dry snow has accumulated, strong south wind may be forming pockets of reactive windslab.
Aspects: North, North East, North West.
Elevations: Alpine.
Likelihood: Possible
Expected Size: 1 - 2