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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 26th, 2024–Feb 27th, 2024

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

Regions

South Okanagan, Shuswap, North Okanagan.

It remains possible that riders could trigger slab avalanches. The best riding will be found in terrain sheltered from the wind.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

We didn't receive any reports of avalanche activity from Sunday. On Saturday there were a few small wind slabs triggered by riders near Kelowna.

Looking forward, it remains possible that riders could trigger wind slabs in lee terrain features at higher elevations.

Snowpack Summary

Strong southwest wind redistributed the 10 to 20 cm of recent snow, forming wind slabs in lee terrain features near ridges. Soft snow may prevail in terrain sheltered from the wind.

A thick and hard widespread crust that formed in early February is buried 40 to 60 cm deep. This crust may have a weak layer of facets above it.

Weather Summary

Monday Night

Cloudy with 1 to 5 cm of snow then clearing. 20 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -14 °C.

Tuesday

Clear skies and afternoon clouds. 20 to 40 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -16 °C.

Wednesday

Cloudy with 10 cm of snow. 40 to 60 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C. Freezing level 1600 m.

Thursday

Cloudy with 10 to 20 cm of snow. 20 to 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C. Freezing level 1200 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Carefully evaluate steep lines for wind slabs.
  • Carefully monitor the bond between the new snow and old surface.
  • Look for signs of instability: whumphing, hollow sounds, shooting cracks, and recent avalanches.

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.