Avalanche forecast

Vancouver Island

Mar 6 – 7, 2025Avalanche Canada
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Avalanche danger

Sat
Sun
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
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Highlights

Keep an eye on the effects of warming and solar input throughout the day

Avalanche activity will likely increase when the snow surface feels moist

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1–1.5

    Wind slabs could become more sensitive to rider triggering throughout the day due to solar input.

  • Loose Wet

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Likely
    Size
    1–1.5

    Wet loose avalanches will increase in likelihood throughout the day with rising freezing level and solar input.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanches have been reported in the past 3 days at the time of publishing. We suspect that human triggered avalanches could have occurred during the day on Wednesday.

Snowpack Summary

5 to 20 cm of new, dense  snow has fallen over a widespread surface crust in the past couple days. Beneath, the upper snowpack is moist.

The snow surface will likely become moist during the day on all aspects and elevations except for high north facing slopes.

Where still intact, a crust buried in January may be found 100 to 150 cm deep. Below this, the snowpack is well-bonded and stable. At lower elevations, snow coverage is thin.

Weather Summary

Wednesday Night

Partly cloudy. 10 to 20 km/h north ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -1 °C, potential for inversion with colder temperatures at lower elevations.

Thursday

Mostly sunny. 15 to 30 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Freezing level rising to 1700 m.

Friday

Increasing cloud throughout the day with up to 20 cm of snow. 20 to 40 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -1 °C.

Saturday

Cloudy with 10 to 60 mm of mixed precipitation. 30 to 50 km/h south ridgetop wind. Freezing level around 1600 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Be careful as you transition into wind-affected terrain.
  • Use ridges or ribs to avoid areas of wind-loaded snow.
  • Be alert to conditions that change with elevation and sun exposure.
  • Back off slopes as the surface becomes moist or wet with rising temperatures.

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