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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 25th, 2024–Feb 26th, 2024

Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
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

Kootenay Boundary, Rossland, South Okanagan, Shuswap, North Okanagan.

Keep in mind the buried weak layer, it is still able to be triggered by riders.

The best riding will be found in places sheltered from the wind.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

On Saturday there were a few small wind slabs triggered by riders near Kelowna.

Snowpack Summary

10 to 15 cm of recent snow is being redistributed by the wind at treeline and above. At low elevations, a thin crust can be found which is more prominent on slopes facing the sun.

The widespread crust buried in early February is buried down 40 to 60 cm and has sugary facets on top.

Weather Summary

Sunday Night

Cloudy with up to 10 cm of snow. 35 to 65 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.

Monday

Partly cloudy. 20 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.

Tuesday

Mostly clear with up to 5 cm of snow. 15 to 30 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -16 °C.

Wednesday

Mostly cloudy with 5 to 10 cm of snow. 55 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Be carefull around freshly wind loaded features.
  • Carefully monitor the bond between the new snow and old surface.
  • Look for signs of instability: whumphing, hollow sounds, shooting cracks, and recent 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.

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.