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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 16th, 2026–Mar 17th, 2026

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

Regions

Northwest Coastal, Boundary, Stewart.

New snow and strong southerly winds will build reactive storm slabs on Tuesday.

Storm slabs have the potential to step down and trigger large, destructive avalanches.

Confidence

Moderate

  • Deep persistent slabs could become more likely with the forecast weather.
  • We are confident a natural avalanche cycle will begin shortly after the arrival of the incoming weather.

Avalanche Summary

Observations have been limited in this region, but we suspect that a natural avalanche cycle is occurring.

If you head out in the backcountry, let us know what you're seeing by submitting a MIN report.

Snowpack Summary

By Tuesday morning, 40-80 cm of new snow will have fallen throughout the region. This new snow is falling on surface hoar and facetted snow from recent cold temperatures. In open areas, strong southerly winds will be redistributing new snow, creating wind-affected surfaces.

The mid snowpack, down 100 to 150 cm, weak layers of surface hoar, facets and crusts remain a concern, especially where there is no crust above. Triggering of these layers is becoming less likely, but remains at a depth where human triggering is possible.

The remaining snowpack is generally well settled and well bonded.

Weather Summary

Monday Night
Cloudy. 10 cm of snow. 50 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C.

Tuesday
Cloudy. 4 to 10 cm of snow. 50 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

Wednesday
Mostly cloudy. 5 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

Thursday
Mostly cloudy. 10 to 20 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Any travel under High danger should exclusively be in flat or gentle terrain, far away from any overhead hazard.
  • Storm slab size and sensitivity to triggering will likely increase through the day.
  • Storm slabs in motion may step down to deeper layers resulting in large avalanches.
  • Avoid shallow, rocky areas where the snowpack transitions from thick to thin.

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.

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.

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.