Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 12th, 2026–Feb 13th, 2026

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 unlikely, human triggered possible.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

Kootenay Boundary, Purcells, Bonnington, Grohman, Kootenay Pass, Norns, Ymir, Crawford, Kokanee, Retallack, Valhalla, Whatshan.

A weak layer in the snowpack remains a concern for human-triggering.

Avalanche activity on this layer has tapered, but the snowpack structure remains suspect. Don't let your guard down.

Confidence

Moderate

We are confident that there are persistent slabs in the snowpack, but uncertain about how likely they are to trigger.

Avalanche Summary

On Tuesday a human triggered persistent slab avalanche was reported near Nelson. This avalanche was a small (size 1.5) 30 cm deep, on a Northwest aspect near 2000 m.

On Sunday, several human-triggered storm slab and persistent slab avalanches were reported.

Storm slabs releases were roughly 15 cm deep, with deeper releases in wind loaded areas.
Persistent slab releases were roughly 30 to 40 cm deep, failing on the late-January layer of surface hoar/facets/crust.

Snowpack Summary

Cool and clear conditions are promoting surface hoar growth, primarily in areas protected from the sun and wind. Below this 10 to 15 cm of settled snow overlies another surface hoar layer. On south aspect terrain the upper snowpack is becoming moist during the day with solar warming.

The most concerning feature of the snowpack is surface hoar on a melt-freeze crust, with a thick layer of facets below, roughly 30 to 50 cm deep. Avalanche activity on this layer has tapered but this snowpack structure remains a concern.

The mid and lower snowpack remain well settled, with no significant concerns at this time.

Weather Summary

Thursday Night
Mostly clear skies. 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

Friday
Cloudy. 2 to 3 cm of snow. 20 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C.

Saturday
Mostly cloudy. 5 to 10 cm of snow. 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C.

Sunday
Mostly sunny. 1 to 3 cm of snow. 10 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Be aware of the potential for remote triggering and large avalanches due to buried surface hoar.
Keep in mind a buried crust offers an excellent bed surface for avalanches.
Be especially cautious as you transition into wind-affected terrain.
Use careful route-finding and stick to moderate angled slopes with low consequences.

Problems

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.

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.