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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 12th, 2026–Jan 13th, 2026

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

Regions

Lizard-Flathead, Akamina, Flathead, Lizard, Moyie.

Take extra precautions if entering wind-affected terrain and give cornices a wide berth.

Confidence

Moderate

  • Uncertainty is due to limitations in the field data.

Avalanche Summary

Sunday

  • A natural size 1.5 storm slab occurred

  • Skiers intentionally cut small size 1 slabs and cornices in the Lizard Range.

Saturday

  • Several size 1 to 1.5 slabs were reported in alpine and treeline terrain across the region.

  • Skiers accidentally triggered wind slabs on Mt.Fernie (MIN post here) and in Cabin Bowl.

  • A natural cornice-triggered avalanche was also reported - see photos.

Looking forward

  • We expect wind slabs & cornices to remain triggerable on Tuesday.

Snowpack Summary

Recent snow, combined with strong southwesterly winds and relatively warm temperatures, has built large cornices and wind slabs on leeward aspects, particularly near ridgetops.

A weak layer of surface hoar can be found in some sheltered terrain features buried 40 to 60 cm. In other areas, a melt-freeze crust can be found at similar burial depths, up to around 2000 m.

The remaining snowpack currently has no layers of concern.

Weather Summary

Monday Night
Cloudy. 1 to 4 cm of snow. 50 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C. Freezing level 1600 m.

Tuesday
Cloudy. 0 to 2 mm of precipitation as snow or rain at treeline. 40 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 0 °C. Freezing level rising to 2100 m.

Wednesday
Mostly sunny. 50 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 4 °C. Freezing level rising to 3700 m.

Thursday
Sunny. 30 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -1 °C. Freezing level around 1400 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Keep your guard up at all elevations. Wind slab formation has been extensive and could extend into openings below treeline.
  • Cornices often break further back than expected; give them a wide berth when traveling on ridgetops.
  • Surface hoar distribution is highly variable. Avoid generalizing your observations.

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.

Cornices

Cornice Fall is the release of an overhanging mass of snow that forms as the wind moves snow over a sharp terrain feature, such as a ridge, and deposits snow on the downwind (leeward) side. Cornices range in size from small wind drifts of soft snow to large overhangs of hard snow that are 30 feet (10 meters) or taller. They can break off the terrain suddenly and pull back onto the ridge top and catch people by surprise even on the flat ground above the slope. Even small cornices can have enough mass to be destructive and deadly. Cornice Fall can entrain loose surface snow or trigger slab avalanches.