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 12th, 2022–Mar 13th, 2022

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

Regions

Kootenay Boundary.

Continue to assess the wind slab hazard as you move through terrain.

Confidence

Moderate - Uncertainty is due to the complexity of the snowpack’s structure.

Weather Forecast

Saturday night: no new snow expected. Light southwest winds and a low of -5 at 1700m.

Sunday: cloudy with flurries bringing up to 10cm of snow and light southwest winds. Freezing level rising to 1500m.

Monday: stormy with 10 to 20cm of new snow expected. Light to moderate southerly winds with freezing levels rising to 1500m.

Tuesday: stormy with up to 20cm of new snow expected. Light to moderate southwest winds and freezing levels rising to 1700m.

Avalanche Summary

Over the past few days only a few small skier triggered slab avalanches have been reported. These avalanches were all at treeline.

Snowpack Summary

New snow accompanied by southwest winds will likely form new wind slabs on north and east aspects. Moist snow could be observed below treeline.

A new surface hoar/crust layer has recently been buried, it is not yet a concern. In the southern half of the region a crust from earlier this month can be found on all aspects and elevations down 10 to 30cm. 

The late February layer is down 50cm on average. It consists of surface hoar crystals in shady, wind-sheltered areas around treeline and a crust on solar aspects.

Several other persistent weak layers from February and January can be found in the upper and mid snowpack.

Terrain and Travel

  • Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind affected terrain.
  • Avoid steep convexities or areas with a thin, rocky, or variable snowpack.
  • Be aware of the potential for large avalanches due to the presence of buried persistent weak layers.

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.