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Archived

Avalanche Forecast

Jan 6th, 2024–Jan 7th, 2024
Alpine
3: Considerable
The avalanche danger rating in the alpine will be considerable
Treeline
3: Considerable
The avalanche danger rating at treeline will be considerable
Below Treeline
2: Moderate
The avalanche danger rating below treeline will be moderate
Alpine
2: Moderate
The avalanche danger rating in the alpine will be moderate
Treeline
2: Moderate
The avalanche danger rating at treeline will be moderate
Below Treeline
1: Low
The avalanche danger rating below treeline will be low
Alpine
3: Considerable
The avalanche danger rating in the alpine will be considerable
Treeline
2: Moderate
The avalanche danger rating at treeline will be moderate
Below Treeline
2: Moderate
The avalanche danger rating below treeline will be moderate

Regions: Bonnington, Crawford, Flathead, Grohman, Kokanee, Kootenay Boundary, Kootenay Pass, Lizard, Lizard-Flathead, Moyie, Norns, Retallack, Rossland, South Okanagan, St. Mary, Valhalla, Ymir.

7am update: Storm slabs have been touchy. Carefully evaluate how the new snow is bonding to old surfaces. Cautious route-finding and conservative decision-making are essential.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

Numerous large storm slab avalanches were reported on Saturday. Several were skier-triggered, including a size 2.5 near Nelson that resulted in serious injury.

On Thursday in the Valhallas, one rider-triggered avalanche (size 1.5) failed on facets near the ground. This was on a steep, shallow, rocky feature.

Snowpack Summary

Expect up to 40 cm of new snow by the end of the day Sunday to be sitting on a variety of old layers including crusts, wind-affected snow, and powder.

The middle of the snowpack contains several crusts buried 50 to 70 cm deep. Facets have been seen above the crusts near Kokanee and Valhalla.

Below that are a couple of layers of surface hoar that have been made difficult to trigger by the thick crusts above. If the crust doesn't exist be sure to investigate these layers.

Snowpack depth at treeline is 100 to 140 cm.

Weather Summary

Saturday Night

Cloudy with 10 to 15 cm of snow, variable direction alpine wind 10 to 20 km/h, treeline temperature -9 °C.

Sunday

Cloudy with up to 5 cm of snow, north alpine wind 10 km/h, treeline temperature -10 °C.

Monday

Mostly clear with increasing clouds through the day, a dusting of snow, southwest alpine wind 25 to 35 km/h, treeline temperature -12 °C.

Tuesday

Mostly cloudy with 10 to 20 cm of snow, southwest alpine wind 55 km/h, treeline temperature -7 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Give the new snow time to settle and stabilize before pushing into bigger terrain.
  • Use small low consequence slopes to test the bond of the new snow.
  • Shooting cracks, whumphs and recent avalanches are strong indicators of an unstable snowpack.

Avalanche Problems

Storm Slabs

Expect this problem to be most reactive and dangerous in lee areas affected by the wind.

Aspects: All aspects.

Elevations: All elevations.

Likelihood: Possible

Expected Size: 1 - 2.5