Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 25th, 2026–Jan 26th, 2026

Alpine

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

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 possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Regions

Northwest Inland, Nass, Seven Sisters, Howson, Kispiox, Ningunsaw.

Fresh snow will not bond to the crust. Watch for reactive pockets building in wind-loaded terrain.

In isolated areas, a persistent slab may still lurk beneath the surface.

Confidence

High

We are uncertain about how quickly persistent slabs are gaining strength.

Avalanche Summary

January 24

A few wind slab avalanches to size 2 on north and northwest aspects, suspected to be a few days old.

January 21

A skier triggered a persistent slab avalanche when transitioning into wind affected terrain. A firm wind slab stepped down 70 cm to the weak layer below.

January 19

Few small wind slabs were reported in steep north-facing alpine terrain that appeared to have been triggered by cornice fall.

Limited field observations, submit a MIN if you are out.

Snowpack Summary

A crust exists on or near the surface in almost all terrain from the prolonged heat, rain and inversion.

The upper 80 to 150 cm of snow has been altered by previous strong southerly winds at upper elevations. The top 10 cm of the most recent crust is facetting in alpine and at treeline. Below 1000 m there is large surface hoar on this crust.

The mid and lower snowpack is well settled with no current layers of concern. Treeline snow depths throughout the region range from 150 cm to 250 cm.

Weather Summary

Sunday Night
Mostly cloudy. 1 to 4 cm of snow. 50 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C.

Monday
Cloudy. 3 to 15 cm of snow. 50 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C.

Tuesday
Mostly cloudy. 5 cm of new snow. 80 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C.

Wednesday
Mostly cloudy. 4 to 10 cm of snow. 60 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Closely monitor how the new snow is bonding to the old surface.
Be careful with wind-loaded pockets, especially near ridge crests and rollovers.
In areas where deep persistent slabs may exist, avoid shallow or variable depth snowpacks and slopes above cliffs.

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.