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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 4th, 2024–Jan 5th, 2024

Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Alpine
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
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 unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Regions

Sea To Sky, Brandywine, Garibaldi, Homathko, Spearhead, Tantalus, Sky Pilot, Birkenhead.

With a forecast of fresh snow falling with strong winds, expect to find an increasingly reactive snowpack and avalanche hazard highest at the end of the day.

Confidence

High

Weather Summary

Thursday Night

Cloudy. Up to 10 cm of snow by Friday morning. Moderate and increasing southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature around -8 °C.

Friday

Snowing. 15-30 cm new snow accumlating by 4pm. Very strong southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature around -5 °C.

Saturday

Cloudy. Up to 65 mm of precipitation in 48 hrs (falling as snow and ending early morning). Moderate west ridgetop wind. Treeline low around -6 °C.

Sunday

Mix of sun and clouds. no precipitation. Light northt ridgetop wind. Treeline low around -8 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Storm slab size and sensitivity to triggering will likely increase through the day.
  • Use caution above cliffs and terrain traps where even small avalanches may have severe consequences.
  • Avoid shallow snowpack areas, rock outcroppings and steep convex terrain where triggering is most likely.

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.