Avalanche Forecast
Regions: Brandywine, Garibaldi, Homathko, Powell River, Sea To Sky, Spearhead, Stave, Tantalus.
Seek out sheltered simple terrain for the best riding conditions. Storm snow on steep slopes and wind affected features may remain reactive to human triggers.
Confidence
Moderate
Avalanche Summary
On Friday, natural storm slabs were reported to size 1.5.
On Thursday, several small wind slab avalanches were skier accidentally triggered, skier remotely triggered and naturally triggered up to size 1. All avalanches were reported on north and east aspects at 2000 m.
If you head to the backcountry please post your reports and photos to the Mountain Information Network, the information is very helpful to forecasters.
Snowpack Summary
Expect up to 30 cm of storm snow at higher elevations by Sunday morning. At lower elevations this may have fallen as mixed precipitation or rain. Storm snow overlies old wind affected surfaces and hard crusts. Strong southwest winds are transporting storm snow and building deep pockets in on north and east facing terrain.
A crust from mid-January can be found down 40 to 70 cm deep. A number of weak layers exist within the middle and lower snowpack, but the thick crusts sitting above them make triggering avalanches on these layers unlikely. The areas of concern in terms of triggering a deeper layer are shallow rocky areas.
Weather Summary
Saturday Night
Cloudy skies overnight with 5-10 cm of snow expected overnight. Freezing levels sit around 1200 m, with moderate southerly winds.
Sunday
Cloudy skies, 5 cm of snow expected. Freezing levels sit around 1000-1500 m, with southerly winds easing to light westerlies.
Monday
Mostly cloudy skies with up to 15 cm of snow. Strong west/southwest winds. Freezing levels around 1500 m.
Tuesday
Cloudy. Moderate to heavy snowfall with strong southwest winds. Freezing levels around 1000 m.
TuesdayCloudy with isolated flurries, 10-15 cm accumulation. Southwesterly ridgetop winds 40 to 60 km/h. Treeline temperatures warm to -1 ËšC. Freezing levels 1300 m.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
Terrain and Travel Advice
- Continue to make conservative terrain choices while the storm snow settles and stabilizes.
- Don't be too cavalier with decision making, storm slabs may remain sensitive to human triggering.
- Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind affected terrain.
Avalanche Problems
Storm Slabs
Storm snow is covering a variety of surfaces including stiff wind slabs and a faceting crust, which may take time to bond.
Strong southwesterly winds are transporting storm snow into deep pockets in lees. Be especially cautious as you transition into wind-affected terrain. Watch for an increase in slab properties in wind-blown areas.
At lower elevations precipitation may fall as wet snow or rain, watch for loose wet avalanche potential on steep slopes as the surface snow loses cohesion.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: All elevations.
Likelihood: Possible - Likely
Expected Size: 1 - 2