Avalanche forecast

Northwest Inland

Jan 22 – 23, 2016Avalanche Canada
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Avalanche danger

Sun
Mon
Alpine
3 · Considerable
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
2 · Moderate
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Highlights

Pay close attention to new snow amounts and whether or not the surface snow is loose or cohesive. Tricky conditions are likely if a cohesive slab forms.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible - Likely
    Size
    1–3
    Watch for pockets of wind slab in exposed lee and cross-loaded terrain. These wind slabs may release easily under the weight of a skier or snowmobile, especially where they are sitting on a persistent weakness. 

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1–3
    New snow has been slowly accumulating over a layer of facets and surface hoar and may now be primed for triggering in some areas.

Confidence

Low - Due to the number of field observations

Weather Forecast

Saturday: Cloudy with a chance of flurries. The freezing level is at valley bottom and winds ease to light. Sunday: Mainly cloudy. The freezing level is at valley bottom and winds are moderate from the southeast. Monday: Cloudy with light snow. The freezing level could rise to 600-800 m and winds increase to strong from the S-SE.

Avalanche Summary

There are very few observations from the region. No new natural avalanches have been reported. One size 1 skier-triggered avalanche was reported on Thursday. This occurred on a relatively small, shallow slope below treeline.

Snowpack Summary

An additional 5-10 cm of snow with moderate or strong southeast winds may be enough to form fresh, reactive wind slabs in lee features. In some places this could also activate buried surface hoar in the upper snowpack, generally found between 30 and 60 cm deep. Stay tuned to signs of instability like recent avalanches, whumpfing, and shooting cracks. The mid pack that was reported to be well settled may have now facetted in the shallower areas, and the deeper basal layers are almost certainly facetted and weak. We have not heard of any full depth releases on weak basal layers yet.

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