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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 7th, 2026–Apr 8th, 2026

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

Regions

Sea To Sky, Brandywine, Garibaldi, Homathko, Powell River, Spearhead, Tantalus, Sky Pilot, Tetrahedron.

There's still a bit of winter hanging on in the alpine. Cornices yet to drop, dry snow yet to shed in a wet loose cycle, maybe even a stubborn wind slab or two. Pack sunglasses, not blinders!

Confidence

High

  • We have a good understanding of the snowpack structure and confidence in the weather forecast.

Avalanche Summary

Avalanche activity has quieted since the weekend warmup, but several more natural wet loose avalanches up to size 2.5 were observed in the Whistler area again on Monday. This was focused on west aspects above 2000 m. Ski cutting produced several size 1.5 releases.

On the weekend, wet loose activity was reported at all elevations to size 2.5. In addition, numerous cornice falls and wind slab avalanches were reported.

Snowpack Summary

Spring-like melt-freeze cycles now characterize a daily evolution of surface conditions on all but north-facing slopes above 2000 m, where 10 to 20 cm of dry snow may still be found.

A crust/facet layer from late March sits 20 to 80 cm deep. It isn't presently a concern but perhaps gives cornice falls from high north aspects some chance of triggering a slab.

A thick crust sits 80-100 cm deep. Near Whistler, some facets have been reported around this crust. The snowpack below is moist, but well settled and strong.

Weather Summary

Tuesday Night
Clear skies. 10 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 0 °C. Freezing level 1600 m.

Wednesday
Sunny. 10 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline high temperature 2 °C. Freezing level to 1800 m.

Thursday
Sunny. 10 km/h east ridgetop wind. Treeline high temperature 6 °C. Freezing level to 2500 m.

Friday
Sunny before clouding over near end-of-day. 5 to 20 km/h southeast ridgetop wind, increasing. Treeline high temperature 7 °C. Freezing level to 2700 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Carefully evaluate steep lines for wind slabs.
  • Pay attention to cornices and give them a wide berth when traveling on or below ridges.
  • Rocks will heat up with daytime warming and may become trigger points for loose wet avalanches.
  • Limit exposure to steep, sun exposed slopes, especially when the solar radiation is strong.
  • Avalanche activity is unlikely when a thick melt-freeze crust is present on the snow surface.

Problems

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.

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.

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.