Regions
Kootenay Boundary.
Solar warming will drive the Avalanche Danger throughout the forecast period. Watch your overhead hazard and be alert to conditions that change with aspect, elevation and time of day.
Weather Forecast
A ridge of high pressure will dominate the province bringing mainly clear skies and generally light ridgetop winds for the forecast period. The freezing level will rising gradually from about 2000m on Tuesday to about 2900m by Thursday.
Avalanche Summary
On Sunday, small storm slabs (in the size 1 range) were reported at higher elevations in the Rossland area. No other avalanches were reported. A new round of storm slab activity is expected in response to new snow and moderate winds on Sunday. Storm slab activity may persist for longer than usual due to underlying surface hoar. With forecast sunny weather, widespread loose wet avalanche activity can also be expected, especially in steep, sun-exposed terrain. Warming may also trigger cornice falls which could, in turn, trigger destructive persistent weaknesses.
Snowpack Summary
13-25cm of new snow overlies small surface hoar on shaded slopes and a melt-freeze crust on sun-exposed slopes. About 30-50cm below the surface, you'll likely find another hard crust which exists everywhere except high, north-facing terrain. The late February persistent weak layer down 70 to 120 cm remains a low probability / high consequence concern. Test results are variable, with occasional sudden planar (pop) results. While generally becoming unlikely to trigger, this layer could wake up with a cornice fall, warm temperatures or from a thin snowpack area. Cornices are large and looming and will become weak with forecast warming and solar radiation
Problems
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.
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.
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.