Dashboard Regions Weather Stations Radar Alerts Glossary
Contact About
Log In

Register for an account and never miss a forecast again!

Register

Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 7th, 2024–Jan 8th, 2024

Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

Cariboos, North Rockies, McBride, Quesnel, Sugarbowl, Kakwa, McGregor, Pine Pass, Renshaw, Robson.

Seek out sheltered snow for better riding away from wind slab hazards. Start small and watch for signs of instability in case you encounter a pocket of buried surface hoar.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

Observations in the region have been limited but the North Rockies field team observed rider triggerable wind slabs in Pine Pass on Friday. Check out the MIN.

If you go out in the backcountry, please consider sharing your observations on the Mountain Information Network (MIN).

Snowpack Summary

Up to 30 cm of new snow with southerly winds has formed wind slabs on lee features at upper elevations. The new snow overlies a crust up to 1400 m on all aspects, but it may sit over a weak layer of surface hoar in sheltered areas.

Two additional layers of surface hoar can be found in the top meter of the snowpack at treeline. These layers are generally no longer a concern, the exception being shallow rocky areas at upper treeline.

The current snowpack has considerable variation in structure and depths across the region and is shallow for this time of year.

Weather Summary

Sunday night

Increasing cloud in the evening or overnight. Southwest alpine wind increasing to 10 to 20 km/h.

Monday

Becoming mainly cloudy with trace amounts of new snow expected, flurries increasing overnight. Southwest alpine wind 20 to 30 km/h. Treeline temperature -10°C.

Tuesday

Cloudy with 5 to 15 cm of new snow expected, southwest alpine wind 20 to 40 km/h, treeline temperature falling to -14°C, cooling further overnight.

Wednesday

Clearing. Northwest alpine wind 5-10 km/h. Treeline temperature -20°C to -25°C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Be carefull around freshly wind loaded features.
  • Carefully evaluate steep lines for wind slabs.
  • Use ridges or ribs to avoid areas of wind loaded snow.

Problems

Wind Slabs

Wind Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) formed by the wind. Wind typically transports snow from the upwind sides of terrain features and deposits snow on the downwind side. Wind slabs are often smooth and rounded and sometimes sound hollow, and can range from soft to hard. Wind slabs that form over a persistent weak layer (surface hoar, depth hoar, or near-surface facets) may be termed Persistent Slabs or may develop into Persistent Slabs.