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

Feb 28th, 2019–Mar 1st, 2019

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

Regions

Kootenay Boundary.

Wind slabs continue to be reactive to human triggers, especially on south-southwesterly aspects at treeline and above.

Confidence

High -

Weather Forecast

FRIDAY: Cloudy in Kootenay Pass with some sunshine further North around the Nelson area. Snow amounts 2-5 cm. Alpine temperatures near -7 and ridgetop winds moderate variable winds. Freezing levels near 900 m.SATURDAY: Sunny with cloudy periods. Alpine temperatures near -16 and ridgetop winds moderate from the East.SUNDAY: Sunny. Alpine temperatures near -15 and ridgetop winds light from the East.

Avalanche Summary

On Wednesday, wind slabs up to size 2 continue to be reactive to human triggers mostly from SW-W aspects. On Tuesday, a skier triggered a persistent slab avalanche on an E-SE aspect between 1680-1770 m. This is believed to have failed on the early February surface hoar/ crust interface that exists 40-60 cm down. This avalanche was 100 m wide and ran 300 m in length.

Snowpack Summary

New snow 10-15 cm adds to 25 cm from last weekend. Strong northeast winds have redistributed the recent snow, loading leeward slopes and cross-loading slopes at all elevations. The wind slabs are most reactive to the weight of a person on southerly slopes. The upper snowpack now covers variable old wind slabs at higher elevations and sun crusts on south-facing slopes. A weak layer of surface hoar crystals and a crust that was buried on February 7th is now 30-50 cm deep. This layer has been reactive to human triggers up to size 2. Two other surface hoar layers are buried 50 to 80 cm deep the snowpack (referred to as the February 1st and mid-January layers) and continues to be reactive to human triggers. The mid-pack is complex and requires diligence and patience. The lower snowpack is considered generally strong.This MIN report reflects the Kootenay Pass area well. This MIN report reflects the Bonnigton Range.

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.

Persistent Slabs

Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.