Avalanche Forecast

High

• We are confident the likelihood of avalanche will increase with the arrival of the forecast weather.

On Thursday, near Sky Pilot there was a large (size 2) remotely triggered wind slab from an east facing slope, report here. There were also several small skier-controlled wind slabs in other parts of the forecast area.

On Wednesday, there were a few small slabs triggered with explosives near Whistler.

Another 25 to 50 cm is expected Sunday, adding to 30 to 40 cm of snow that was expected to fall by the end of day Saturday.

In some sheltered areas, there is a layer of surface hoar underneath that was buried last weekend. It may become reactive with new load.

The mid-December crust is 100 to 200 cm deep and reaches up to 2200 m. It's well-bonded to the snow above. Above 2200 m, a layer of facets and a crust from November is at the base of the snowpack. These layers are not currently a concern.

Saturday Night
Cloudy. 10 to 20 cm of snow. 20 to 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C. Freezing level 1100 m.

Sunday
Cloudy. 15 to 30 cm of snow. 30 to 50 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C. Freezing level 1300 m.

Monday
Cloudy. 65 to 105 cm of snow above 1500 m, with rain below. Snowline rises to 1900 m in the afternoon. 50 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 1 °C. Freezing level 1900 m, rising to 2400 m.

Tuesday
Mostly cloudy. 5 to 15 mm of rain at treeline. 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 3 °C. Freezing level 2700 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Avoid avalanche terrain during periods of heavy snowfall.
• Avoid exposure to overhead avalanche terrain; avalanches may run surprisingly far.
• Only the most simple non-avalanche terrain with no overhead hazard is appropriate at this time.