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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 18th, 2020–Feb 19th, 2020

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

Regions

South Coast.

Sunny skies will prevail, warming up the snowpack. Expect the snow to moisten and weaken during the heat of the day.

Confidence

High - Confidence is due to a stable weather pattern; little change is expected for several days.

Weather Forecast

TUESDAY NIGHT: Clear skies, light northeast wind, treeline temperature -1 C, freezing level 1200 m.

WEDNESDAY: Clear skies, light southeast wind, treeline temperature 2 C, freezing level 1800 m.

THURSDAY: Clear skies, light to moderate southwest wind, treeline temperature 0 C, freezing level 1500 m.

FRIDAY: Increasing clouds, moderate southwest wind, treeline temperature 0 C, freezing level 1300 m.

Avalanche Summary

No recent avalanches were observed in the region. The last reported activity was from the weekend, where wind and storm slab avalanches were triggered by riders at treeline and alpine elevations in the north of the region.

Snowpack Summary

Clear skies and a warming trend are warming the snowpack, primarily on sun-exposed slopes. Snow may become wet and loose during the heat of the day. Wind slabs may also linger in steep, lee terrain near ridges at alpine elevations in the north of the region.

The remainder of the snowpack is well-settled. The snowpack depth varies from around 200 to 250 cm at the peaks of the North Shore mountains (1400 m) and rapidly decreases with elevation to no snow below 1000 m.

Terrain and Travel

  • Cornices become weak with daytime heating.
  • Avoid sun exposed slopes when the solar radiation is strong, especially if snow is moist or wet

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.