Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 23rd, 2026–Feb 24th, 2026

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Regions

South Columbia, Esplanade, Jordan, North Monashee, North Selkirk, West Purcell, Badshot-Battle, Central Selkirk, Goat, Gold, Retallack.

Recent new snow continues to a add load to buried weak layers. Stick to lower angle terrain, as it is still possible to trigger persistent slab avalanches.

Confidence

Moderate

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

Avalanche Summary

Numerous natural and human-triggered small to large wind and persistent slab avalanches have been occurring daily. Some of them are being triggered accidentally or remotely (from a distance) and are occurring on all aspects and elevations.

Expect persistent slabs to continue to be reactive as snowfall continues to add load to the buried weak layers.

Snowpack Summary

10 to 25 cm of recent new snow has been redistributed by moderate southerly winds.

Three persistent weak layers of concern may be found in the upper 150 cm of the snowpack:

25 to 60+ cm down is a layer of surface hoar in sheltered areas, or a melt-freeze crust on sun-exposed slopes from mid-February.
40 to 100+ cm down is the early-February layer of surface hoar in wind-sheltered terrain and a crust on sun-exposed slopes.
70 to 120 cm down is the late-January layer of surface hoar and facets over a melt-freeze crust.

All of these persistent layers have continued to produce large avalanches in the region.

The remainder of the snowpack below is well consolidated.

Weather Summary

Monday Night

Mostly cloudy. 1 to 3 cm of snow. 20-40 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C.

Tuesday

Mostly cloudy. 15-25 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C.

Wednesday

Mainly cloudy. 2 to 5 cm of snow. 20-40 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C.

Thursday

Mostly cloudy. 5 to 15 cm of snow. 20-60 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Remote triggering is a concern; avoid terrain where triggering overhead slopes is possible.
Avoid exposure to overhead avalanche terrain; avalanches may run surprisingly far.
Continue to make conservative terrain choices while the storm snow settles and stabilizes.
Fresh snow rests on a problematic persistent slab, don't let good riding lure you into complacency.

Problems

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.

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.