Avalanche Forecast

Fair - Intensity of incoming weather is uncertain

Wednesday: Expect flurries to build, with freezing levels reaching 1200m in the afternoon. We could see up to 15cm of new snow with southerly winds up to 50km/h. Thursday / Friday: Continued stormy conditions, with moderate and at times heavy precipitation. The most intense wave looks to arrive Thursday midday. Freezing levels should reach 1000m each afternoon with continued moderate to strong southerly winds.

Loose wet avalanches up to size 2.0 triggered by daytime heating have been reported, as well as isolated cornice releases to size 2.5. The warm weather has increased the glide crack activity with new cracks opening in the Coquihalla area but not actually failing.

The recent warm, clear weather has left us with an aggressive melt freeze crust on solar aspects well into the alpine while shady, dead north slopes cultivated some small surface hoar and remained powdery. These surfaces are newly buried by the arrival of this latest storm. New windslabs are growing in lee locations at ridgecrests. Mature cornices will see further growth under current conditions. Deep, persistent weak layers buried in early February are variable in distribution across the region but remain a key concern. In recent snowpack analysis these layers remain well preserved as surface hoar on north aspects and as a suncrust, facet combo on solar aspects. Although the likelihood of triggering has decreased, the potential for surprisingly large avalanches remains.