This week's cold temperatures and short days can turn even small incidents like broken equipment into a very bad time. Bring lots of warm layers, hot drinks and a headlamp when venturing out.
Strong northeasterly winds redistributed available snow into fresh winds slabs on lee features and stripped windward areas. Watch for pockets of cohesive snow in exposed terrain at upper elevations, around ridges and convex rolls.
On Sunday, a few small wind slabs up to size 1 were released by skiers.
On Saturday, an avalanche was reported via MIN from the Barkerville area. The avalanche looked to be a size 1.5 and be at least 24 hours old.
On Friday, a glide slab avalanche, size 1.5, was observed in the northern Cariboos. The avalanche initiated on a rock slab at treeline. Numerous other glide cracks were observed in the area. Glide slab avalanches are very difficult to forecast, so it is best to avoid travelling under glide cracks.
Please continue to share any observations or photos on the Mountain Information Network!
Cold temperatures are faceting the upper snowpack. 5-10 cm of snow was redistributed by strong northeasterly winds into fresh winds slabs in exposed areas. In very sheltered areas, new snow sits on a weak layer of preserved, 5 mm large surface hoar. Distribution of this weak layer is uncertain.
40-80 cm of snow continues to settle over a generally weak, sugary mid and lower snowpack. Snowpack depths are highly variable, ranging from 80-180 cm in the alpine. Below treeline, the snowpack is thin and sugary, making it a challenge to access terrain in many areas without damaging your sled or skis.
Monday Night
Clear, 30 km/h easterly wind in the North Rockies and light wind in the Cariboos, temperature low around -35 °C.
Tuesday
Sunny, 20-30 km/h easterly wind in the North Rockies, light northeast wind in the Cariboos, temperature high at -30 °C.
Wednesday
Mainly sunny, 20-40 km/h northeast wind, temperature high around -30 °C.
Thursday
Sunny, up to 20 km/h westerly wind, temperature high around -27 °C.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
