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

Mar 21st, 2023–Mar 22nd, 2023

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

Regions

Sea To Sky, Brandywine, Garibaldi, Homathko, Spearhead.

Pay attention to changing snow conditions with daytime warming and strong solar effect. Minimize your exposure to steep, sunny slopes and cornices overhead.

Confidence

High

Avalanche Summary

Over the weekend several wet-loose avalanches to size 2 were reported, generally occurring on steep, solar aspects.

A few natural, cornice failures were also reported in the region recently.

If you head out in the backcountry, let us know what you are seeing by submitting a report to the Mountain Information Network.

Snowpack Summary

A widespread melt-freeze crust exists on all aspects below treeline and at treeline. The crust extends into the alpine on solar aspects, while the surface snow remains cool and dry on north-facing alpine slopes. Expect the melt-freeze crust to rapidly break down through the day, with warming and solar input.

The mid and lower snowpack is generally well settled and bonding. At the bottom of the snowpack, a layer of weak facets remains present and continues to be monitored, however, it does not appear to be a significant concern currently.

Weather Summary

Tuesday night

Clear. Treeline temperatures around 0 C. Light southerly ridgetop winds. Freezing level 700 m.

Wednesday

Sunny. Treeline temperatures around 0 C. Light southerly ridgetop winds. Freezing level 1800 m.

Thursday

Cloudy with flurries, up to 10 cm. Treeline temperatures -5 to -10 C. Moderate southerly ridgetop winds. Freezing level 1300 m.

Friday

Mostly cloudy, with trace amounts of snow. Treeline temperatures -5 to -10 C. Light southerly ridgetop winds. Freezing level 1000 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Remember that in the spring strong solar radiation and warm temperatures can weaken the snow in a matter of minutes.
  • Be alert to conditions that change with elevation and sun exposure.
  • Pay attention to cornices and give them a wide berth when traveling on or below ridges.

Problems

Loose Wet

Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.