Avalanche Forecast

Moderate

Wednesday: North of Stewart, recent extreme winds resulted in a natural cycle of size 1.5 to 2.5 wind slab avalanches. They occurred on leeward north through east faces. Shooting cracks, which are a sign of instability, were also reported in wind slabs by snowmobilers. These slabs may stay reactive to human triggering for several days.

Early season reports have been extremely limited. Please consider submitting your observations to the Mountain Information Network.

Expect to find sastrugi and hard wind-scoured surfaces in all open wind-exposed areas at upper elevations. Thick wind slabs have formed on many lee slopes.
A rain crust from early November is buried 50 to 100 cm deep in the alpine. In isolated, sheltered areas, a layer of surface hoar may be found 60 cm+ deep.
Snow depths vary across the region but generally range from 100 to 200 cm in the alpine and about 50 cm at 1000 m.

Friday Night

Mostly cloudy with 0 to 2 cm of snow. 60 to 80 km/h southeast wind. Treeline temperature -8°C.

Saturday

Cloudy with 0 to 2 cm of snow. 40 to 50 km/h southeast wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

Sunday

Partly cloudy. 30 to 40 km/h east wind. Treeline temperature high -8 °C.

Monday

Mostly sunny. 10 to 20 km/h variable wind. Treeline temperature high -10 °C

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Keep your guard up at all elevations. Wind slab formation has been extensive and could extend into openings below treeline.
• Avoid freshly wind-loaded features, especially near ridge crests, rollovers, and in steep terrain.
• Seek out sheltered terrain where new snow hasn't been affected by wind.