Avalanche Forecast
Issued: Feb 13th, 2024 4:00PM
The alpine rating is , the treeline rating is , and the below treeline rating is Known problems include Storm Slabs and Loose Wet.
swerner,
Avalanche Canada
New snow and wind have formed slabs that may be reactive to human triggers, especially where buried surface hoar or a crust exists.
Minimize exposure to steep, sun-exposed slopes.
Summary
Confidence
High
Avalanche Summary
Natural avalanche activity has tapered but numerous rider-triggered and remote helicopter-triggered avalanches have been reported up to size 2.5. Some of these avalanches are failing on buried sun crust and surface hoar down 20-25 cm deep.
Snowpack Summary
A new sun crust likely exists on steep solar aspects. 15 to 25 cm of snow overlies a variety of surfaces including a weak layer of small surface hoar in sheltered areas and/or a thin sun crust on solar aspects.
The widespread crust buried in early February is down 30 to 50 cm.
Various weak layers persist in the mid to lower snowpack, however, triggering these layers is unlikely where they are capped by a thick crust.
Weather Summary
Tuesday Night
Clear with some clouds. 15 to 25 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.
Wednesday
Sunny. 10 to 15 km/h north ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -15 °C.
Thursday
Sunny. 20 to 25 km/h east ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -15 °C.
Friday
Sunny. 5 to 10 km/h east ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -12 °C.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
Terrain and Travel Advice
- Avoid steep, rocky, and wind effected areas where triggering slabs is more likely.
- Use small low consequence slopes to test the bond of the new snow.
- The best and safest riding will be on slopes that have soft snow without any slab properties.
- A moist or wet snow surface, pinwheeling and natural avalanches are all indicators of a weakening snowpack.
Problems
Storm Slabs
15 to 25 cm of snow overlies a weak layer of small surface hoar in sheltered areas and/or a thin sun crust on solar aspects. This has been reactive to human triggering.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Loose Wet
Expect sunshine to trigger wet loose avalanches on steep slopes facing the sun.
Aspects: East, South East, South, South West, West.
Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Valid until: Feb 14th, 2024 4:00PM
