Avalanche forecast

Northwest Coastal

Dec 9 – 10, 2015Avalanche Canada
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Avalanche danger

Fri
Sat
Alpine
3 · Considerable
Treeline
3 · Considerable
Below
1 · Low
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Highlights

The places you are going to find the best riding conditions in the wake of the storm are probably the same places where the danger from a layer of buried surface hoar is greatest.

Avalanche problems

  • Storm Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible - Likely
    Size
    2–5
    Natural avalanche activity should taper off as things dry out and cool off. However, storm and wind slabs will likely remain susceptible to human triggers for the forecast period.

Weather Forecast

THURSDAY: light snowfall, and moderate easterly winds, freezing level of 500m. FRIDAY: flurries, light to moderate southerly winds, freezing level of 500mr. SATURDAY: There is some uncertainty in the forecast track of the storm that should hit the coast on Saturday. Some models have it coming in further north which could bring another 10cm of snow to the north west others have it missing the region entirely.

Avalanche Summary

Widespread avalanche activity was reported throughout the recent storm.

Snowpack Summary

Fresh storm and wind slabs are apparently bonding poorly to a variety of weak layers down between 70cm and 1m. The most worrying of these is a layer of surface hoar, which has the potential for remote triggering and wide propagations. It is likely to be lurking in most sheltered areas at tree-line and below although it has been spotted well into the alpine in Bear Pass.  Below 1500m heavy rains may have formed a new crust.

Regions covered