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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 12th, 2022–Mar 13th, 2022

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

Vancouver Island.

Wind slabs may be small but they may slide easily on a slippery crust.

Confidence

High -

Weather Forecast

Saturday night: Cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 5-10 cm, 50-60 km/h southeast wind, treeline temperature -3 C. Freezing level 1000 m.

Sunday: Cloudy, 20 km/h southwest wind, treeline temperature -1 C. Freezing level 1300 m.

Monday: Cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 5-10 cm, 60-70 km/h southwest wind, treeline temperature -1 C. Freezing level 1500 m.

Tuesday: Cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 5-15 cm in most areas, 30 cm closer to the coast, 50-60 km/h southwest wind, treeline temperature -1 C. Freezing level 1000 m.

Avalanche Summary

No recent avalanches were reported. Looking forward, new slabs are expected to progressively form as the snow accumulates. The slabs may be easy to trigger if the snow doesn't bond well to the hard melt-freeze crust.

Snowpack Summary

New snow fell with strong southwest wind. The snow sits on a widespread hard melt-freeze crust found across the region. The crust is thickest at low elevations and on sun-exposed slopes. The crust may not exist on high alpine terrain on north aspects. The new snow may not bond well to this crust.

The remainder of the snowpack is well-bonded.

Below treeline, snowpack depths are below threshold for avalanches in many areas.

Terrain and Travel

  • Although their spatial distribution is isolated, wind slabs are reactive.
  • Wind slabs may be poorly bonded to the underlying crust.
  • Keep in mind the crust offers an excellent bed surface for 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.