Avalanche Forecast
Issued: Mar 28th, 2024 4:00PM
The alpine rating is , the treeline rating is , and the below treeline rating is Known problems include Persistent Slabs.
wlewis,
Avalanche Canada
While the best riding conditions may be found on north facing, alpine slopes - persistent weak layers may still be reactive here.
Choose smaller, low angle slopes to reduce your exposure.
Summary
Confidence
Avalanche Summary
Last reported activity was a human triggered size 1 wind slab avalanche on Tuesday.
While there has been minimal avalanche activity over the past week, professionals in the region are still weary of the persistent slab problem.
Snowpack Summary
Up to 10 cm of recent snow can be found over a widespread crust, resulting in a mix of soft and hard surfaces. South/southwest winds have redistributed this snow into wind slabs around ridgelines on north facing slopes at treeline and above.
A significant crust/facet layer is buried 80-150 cm deep. This layer produced very large natural and human triggered avalanches in early March. While no recent avalanche activity has been observed on this layer, it continues to produce concerning snowpack test results. It has become a low-probability high-consequence problem on north-facing slopes above 2000 m.
Weather Summary
Thursday Night
Mostly cloudy with isolated flurries. Light and variable ridgetop wind. Freezing level drops to around 800 m.
Friday
A mix of sun and cloud with isolated flurries possible. 5 km/h north ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C. Freezing level 1500 m.
Saturday
Mostly sunny. 15 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -1 °C. Freezing level 1800 m.
Sunday
Mostly sunny. 15 km/h west ridgetop wind with strong gusts. Freezing level rises to 2500 m in the afternoon, bringing treeline temperatures to +8 °C.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
Terrain and Travel Advice
- Use caution on large alpine slopes, especially around thin areas that may propagate to deeper instabilities.
- Conditions may have improved, but be mindful that deep instabilities are still present.
Problems
Persistent Slabs
Concern remains for human-triggering a persistent weak layer on sheltered north aspects above 2000 m. If triggered, avalanches will be large and destructive. Avoid shallow snowpack areas where triggering is more likely.
Aspects: North, North East, North West.
Elevations: Alpine.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Valid until: Mar 29th, 2024 4:00PM
