Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 9th, 2026–Mar 10th, 2026

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 unlikely, human triggered possible.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

South Coast Inland, Birkenhead, Duffey, South Chilcotin, Stein, Taseko.

Reactive wind slabs may persist on isolated steep, exposed slopes.

Assess your local conditions, as new snow accumulates, slabs may become more widespread.

Confidence

High

The snowpack structure is well understood.
We are confident that there are persistent slabs in the snowpack, but uncertain about how likely they are to trigger.

Avalanche Summary

On Sunday, numerous wind slab avalanches (up to size 2) occurred in exposed terrain across various aspects, along with a few cornice failures.

On Monday, riders triggered what they suspect was a large wind slab near Bralone. See more info in this MIN.

The current cooler temperatures should decrease the reactivity of wind slabs formed over the weekend. However, new snow in areas and wind could form fresh slabs at the surface.

Snowpack Summary

Roughly 5 to 15 cm of recent snow has been affected by strong, variable winds in exposed terrain. A widespread crust, below 2200 m, from last weekend's rain event exists just below this snow or at the surface. At higher elevations, new snow sits atop a generally settled, well-consolidated upper snowpack.

Variable weak layers buried throughout February may persist roughly 30 to 100 cm below the surface, in northerly high elevation terrain. These layers consist of surface hoar, facets, and/or crusts.

The remaining snowpack appears to be strong and well-bonded.

Weather Summary

Monday Night
Partly cloudy. 1 cm of snow. 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -12 °C.

Tuesday
Mostly cloudy. 4 to 10 cm of snow. 50 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -12 °C.

Wednesday
Mostly cloudy. 5 to 10 cm of snow. 50 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.

Thursday
Mix of sun and clouds. 5 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Wind slabs are most reactive during their formation.
Be careful with wind-loaded pockets, especially near ridge crests and rollovers.
Use extra caution around cornices: they are large, fragile, and can trigger slabs on slopes below.
Be aware of the potential for large avalanches due to buried weak layers.

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.