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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 17th, 2023–Feb 18th, 2023

Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Alpine
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Regions

Glacier.

Snowfall and wind early Friday built fresh reactive slabs.

A steady stream of snowfalls from the past two weeks has left plenty of unconsolidated snow in tracks and runouts for entrainment, if triggered expect avalanches to run far and fast.

Confidence

High

Avalanche Summary

On Friday, we received a report of a large (size 3.0) avalanche that was triggered on the west side of Bruins ridge and ran to the bottom of 8812 bowl, nearly affecting the Balu pass skin track.

There was a widespread cycle of natural avalanches, mostly size 2.5-3, in the Highway corridor overnight Thursday into early Friday morning.

On Wednesday, isolated natural avalanches were observed up to size 2 in steep, north facing terrain off Mt. Macdonald, triggered by wind loading. Skiers east of the summit reported several soft slabs reactive to skiers down 5 cm. And reports of loose dry sluffing up to sz 1.0.

Snowpack Summary

Up to 20cm of new snow and moderate Southerly winds built fresh slabs in exposed areas on Friday. This overlies a variety of surfaces; including a weak crust on steep solar aspects; wind effected surfaces at treeline and in the alpine; and settled powder in sheltered areas.

The deep persistent weakness at the base of the snowpack (facets and a crust in some locations), has been showing signs of strengthening recently.

Weather Summary

The weather remains unsettled between storms Saturday, with the next low pressure system arriving Sunday.

Tonight: Scattered flurries (up to 5cm). Alpine low -10°C. Light gusting to Moderate SW ridgetop winds.

Saturday: Mainly cloudy w/ isolated flurries. Alpine high -9°C. Light to moderate W winds.

Sunday: Snow (15-20 cm). Low -10°C, High -7°C. Moderate to strong SW winds.

Monday: Flurries (10-15cm). Low -11°C, High -7°C. Light W wind.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Approach lee and cross-loaded slopes with caution.
  • Avoid areas where the snow feels stiff and/or slabby.
  • Loose avalanches may start small but they can grow and push you into dangerous terrain.

Problems

Storm Slabs

Storm Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer (a slab) of new snow that breaks within new snow or on the old snow surface. Storm-slabs typically last between a few hours and few days (following snowfall). Storm-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 Dry

Loose Dry avalanches are the release of dry unconsolidated snow and typically occur within layers of soft snow near the surface of the snowpack. These avalanches start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-dry avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs.