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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 27th, 2023–Mar 28th, 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.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

Vancouver Island, East Island, North Island, South Island, West Island.

Tune in to the changing conditions of elevation, aspect, and time of day.

Be cautious in wind-affected terrain and avoid steep sun-exposed slopes and overhead hazard when air temperature is warm or the sun is strong.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

Around Mount Cain on Friday, our field team observed small (size 1.5) dry loose avalanches occurring when new snow was exposed to daytime warming and solar input.

If you head out in the backcountry, let us know what you are seeing by submitting a report to the Mountain Information Network.

Snowpack Summary

In terrain above 1600 m, 10-30 cm of preserved dry snow has been affected by recent easterly wind. A crust can be found on the surface below 1600 m.

The mid and lower snowpack are well consolidated and strong.

Weather Summary

Monday night

Clear. Alpine temperatures drop to a low of -3 °C. Ridge wind east 30 km/h to 70 km/h. Freezing level 1200 metres.

Tuesday

Sunny. Alpine temperatures reach a high of 3 °C. Ridge wind east 20 to 75 km/h. Freezing level rises to 1600 metres.

Wednesday

Sunny with cloudy periods. Alpine temperatures reach a high of 7 °C. Ridge wind light from the north. Freezing level rises to 1900 metres.

Thursday

Sunny. Alpine temperatures reach a high of 3 °C. Light easterly ridge wind. Freezing level rises to 1600 metres.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Be carefull around freshly wind loaded features.
  • Look for signs of instability: whumphing, hollow sounds, shooting cracks, and recent avalanches.
  • As surface loses cohesion due to melting, loose wet avalanches become common in steeper terrain.

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.

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.