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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 28th, 2023–Jan 29th, 2023

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

Northwest Coastal, Kitimat, Nass, Rupert, Seven Sisters, Shames, Stewart, Howson, Ningunsaw.

Wind slabs formed during strong outflow winds linger in exposed alpine terrain. While numerous buried weak layers demand careful terrain selection.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

Several wind slab avalanches, up to size 2, were reported on Friday. All in alpine terrain on a variety of aspects and triggered by skiers, explosives, or naturally.

If you are out in the backcountry please consider filling out a Mountain Information Network report.

Snowpack Summary

Recent outflow winds have stripped northerly aspects in the alpine, redistributing the snow into wind slabs on lee, southerly terrain. While at lower elevations a widespread melt-freeze crust exists on the surface up to roughly 1900 m and is preventing the wind from transporting much snow. The crust continues to gain strength and is becoming supportive at most elevations.

In the mid and lower snowpack, a number of buried weak layers remain a concern. These layers are most concerning in shallow, rocky areas at treeline and alpine elevations.

Weather Summary

Saturday night

Clear, with no precipitation. Treeline temperatures -5 to -15 C. Moderate to strong northeast alpine winds, with strong to extreme outflow winds in valleys and inlets.

Sunday

Sunny, with no precipitation. Treeline temperatures 0 to -10 C. Light to moderate northwest alpine winds, with strong to extreme outflow winds in valleys and inlets.

Monday

Cloudy with sunny periods, with flurries and trace amounts of snow. Treeline temperatures 0 to -10 C. Moderate to strong northwest alpine winds.

Tuesday

Cloudy with flurries, 2 to 5 cm. Treeline temperatures -5 to -10 C. Moderate to strong southwest alpine winds.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Expect slab conditions to change drastically as you move into wind exposed terrain.
  • Avoid steep, rocky, and wind effected areas where triggering slabs is more likely.
  • If triggered, wind slabs avalanches may step down to deeper layers resulting in larger avalanches.

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.