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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 9th, 2024–Dec 10th, 2024

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

Regions

Vancouver Island, East Island, North Island, South Island, West Island.

Wet loose avalanches are most likely when new snow sees warming for the first time.

Triggerable wind slabs may still exist in alpine terrain.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanches have been reported in the past few days, but field observations are limited.

If you are going out in the backcountry, please consider filling out a Mountain Information Network (MIN) report.

Snowpack Summary

Up to 30 cm of recent snowfall overlies a crust.

Snow depths at treeline vary across the region from 230 cm near Mt. Washington to 130 cm near Mt Cain.

Weather Summary

Monday Night

High cloud increasing. 15 to 30 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C.

Tuesday

High cloud with a trace of precipitation. 20 to 40 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature +2 °C.

Wednesday

Cloudy with 0 to 15 mm of precipitation, falling as snow above 750 m. 40 to 60 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 0 °C.

Thursday

Cloudy with 5 to 50 mm of precipitation, falling as snow above 1000 m. 60 to 80 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 0 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Back off slopes as the surface becomes moist or wet with rising temperatures.
  • Rocks will heat up with daytime warming and may become trigger points for loose wet avalanches.
  • Carefully evaluate steep lines for wind slabs.

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.

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.