Avalanche forecast

South Coast Inland

Jan 19, 2019Avalanche Canada
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Archived · expired 8 years ago

Avalanche danger

Sun
Mon
Alpine
3 · Considerable
Treeline
3 · Considerable
Below
2 · Moderate
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Highlights

Variable snowfall amounts are forecast for the region, with the most expected in the south. Treat the danger as HIGH if you find more than 30 cm of snow accumulation. This snow may be very touchy to human traffic.

Avalanche problems

  • Storm Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible - Likely
    Size
    1–2
    Expect to find new snow and howling southwest winds on Saturday. The recent snow likely won't bond well to underlying surfaces. Travel conservatively, particularly if you notice substantial accumulation and slab properties.

Confidence

Moderate - Intensity of incoming weather systems is uncertain

Weather Forecast

FRIDAY NIGHT: Cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 5 to 10 cm and possibly more in the south of the region, strong to extreme southwest winds, freezing level 800 m.SATURDAY: Cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 5 to 10 cm, strong southwest winds, alpine temperature -5 C, freezing level rising to 1400 m.SUNDAY: A mix of sun and clouds, light north winds, alpine temperature -6 C, freezing level 800 m.MONDAY: A mix of sun and clouds, light northwest winds, alpine temperature -8 C, freezing level 700 m.

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanches were observed on Thursday. Avalanche activity may increase into the weekend, depending on how much snow accumulates.

Snowpack Summary

Around 5 to 10 cm of snow fell on Friday and more is expected on Saturday. All this snow is falling onto a sun crust on south aspects, a temperature crust below around 1700 m on all aspects, and feathery surface hoar in sheltered areas at all elevation bands. The new snow may not bond well to these surfaces.Below this, the snowpack is generally well-settled. In sections of the region, for example in Manning Park, you may still find a weak layer of surface hoar buried about 60 to 100 cm in sheltered areas around treeline. This layer has not produced any recent avalanches but snowpack tests suggest that it still could.

Regions covered