Avalanche Forecast

Issued: Mar 22nd, 2019 4:04PM

The alpine rating is moderate, the treeline rating is moderate, and the below treeline rating is moderate. Known problems include Loose Wet.

swerner, Avalanche Canada

Sea To Sky.

Even if the skies are cloudy you should avoid slopes that have wet and mushy snow, especially at lower elevations with little overnight re-freeze. Check out this LINK to see how easy it is to trigger a loose wet avalanche.

Summary

Confidence

Moderate -

Weather Forecast

A change in the weather pattern is approaching. FRIDAY NIGHT: Cloudy with isolated flurries. Ridgetop winds moderate from the South and freezing levels 1400 m. SATURDAY: Cloudy. Freezing levels 1400 m and alpine temperatures -2. Ridgetop wind light from the South.SUNDAY: A mix of sun and cloud. Freezing levels 1300 m and alpine temperatures near -3. Ridgetop winds remain light.MONDAY: Cloudy with light snow 5-10 cm. Freezing levels 1700 m and alpine temperatures near -1.

Avalanche Summary

On Thursday, several loose wet avalanches up to size 1 were reported from steep solar terrain at lower elevations. Explosive control produced a size 2.5 loose wet avalanche on a southwest aspect between 1750-2050 m. It ended up triggering three slabs that failed at the ground. Active cornice control using explosives also produced a size 3 cornice failure which did not pull a slab avalanche from the slope below.Natural avalanche activity may start to slowly taper off with cooler temperatures this weekend. Human triggered avalanches are possible especially at lower elevations on southerly aspects due to a lack of re-freeze.

Snowpack Summary

Snow surfaces are variable. On higher North aspects (above 1700 m) you may find some dry, faceted snow. Some of this has been redistributed by southwesterly and northerly winds, potentially creating some isolated wind slabs. On solar aspects (East, South, West) at treeline and in the alpine the upper 10-30 cm will likely sport a firm crust with cooling temperatures. Below treeline the snow could remain moist or wet if it doesn't re-freeze. The snowpack has gone through a lot of change with the hot and sunny weather. The mushy snowpack will start to solidify and lock-up allowing for hard conditions and less avalanche activity, especially on the solar slopes.

Problems

Loose Wet

Human triggered loose wet avalanches may be found at lower elevations below treeline where the snowpack remains soft and mushy. Cornices may be weak and fragile. You don't want to be under or near one of these if they fail.

Loose wet avalanches may be small but they can gain mass and push you into a terrain trap.Give cornices a wide berth when traveling on ridges.

Aspects: East, South East, South, South West, West.

Elevations: Below Treeline.

Likelihood

Possible

Expected Size

1 - 2

Valid until: Mar 23rd, 2019 2:00PM