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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 5th, 2024–Mar 6th, 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 avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Regions

Coquihalla, Harrison-Fraser, Manning, Skagit.

Continue to manage buried weak layers by choosing low-angle terrain, and avoiding overhead hazard.

Minimize your exposure to south facing slopes during strong afternoon sunshine.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanches have been reported. Please submit a MIN report with any photos or observations that may help inform our forecasters!

A MIN report from Saturday in the Coquihalla shows reactive conditions remain, with avalanches noted on unsupported features, possibly remotely triggered.

Professionals remain concerned about the weak layers and are very cautious about stepping into avalanche terrain.

Snowpack Summary

Recent storm snow is beginning to settle. However, reports show this storm snow is still not bonding well to the weak layers within the snowpack. This includes a crust/facet/surface hoar layer buried 60-100 cm deep, and a widespread crust with weak facets above buried up to 130 cm deep.

Strong sunshine is expected to create moist or wet snow on south facing slopes and may increase the reactivity of weak layers.

Weather Summary

Tuesday Night

Clear skies with 20-30 km/h west winds. Freezing level falls to valley bottom.

Wednesday

Mostly sunny with increasing afternoon cloud. 10-20 km/h west winds. Treeline temperature -7 °C. Freezing level around 700 m.

Thursday

Mostly sunny. 30-40 km/h west winds. Treeline temperature -5 °C. Freezing level around 1000 m.

Friday

Mostly cloudy, 30-50 km/h southwest winds. Treeline temperatures may reach +2 °C. Freezing level rises towards 2000 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Minimize exposure to steep, sun exposed slopes, especially when the solar radiation is strong.
  • Fresh snow rests on a problematic persistent slab, don't let good riding lure you into complacency.
  • Remote triggering is a concern, watch out for adjacent and overhead slopes.

Problems

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.

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.