Dashboard Regions Weather Stations Radar Alerts Glossary
Contact About
Log In

Register for an account and never miss a forecast again!

Register

Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 21st, 2025–Dec 22nd, 2025

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

Regions

Kootenay Boundary, Purcells, Bonnington, Grohman, Kootenay Pass, Norns, Rossland, Ymir, Crawford, Kokanee, Retallack, Valhalla, Whatshan.

Watch for changing conditions as you shift elevation and aspect - wind affected features may remain reactive to human triggers.

Confidence

Moderate

  • The snowpack structure is generally well understood.
  • Uncertainty is due to the speed, direction, or duration of the wind and its effect on the snowpack.

Avalanche Summary

On Saturday, wind affected features were reactive to rider triggers to size 1 and sluffing was observed in steep, sheltered features. We expect this to continue with light amounts of new snow.

Snowpack Summary

40–60 cm of recent snowfall combined with strong southwest winds has formed slabs over a 2–5 cm thick crust.

The mid and lower snowpack is generally well-settled and contains multiple crust layers.

Weather Summary

Sunday Night
Mostly cloudy. 4 to 5 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C. Freezing level 900 m.

Monday
Mostly cloudy. 1 to 2 cm of snow. 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C. Freezing level 1000 m.

Tuesday
Mostly cloudy. 5 to 10 cm of snow. 40 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C. Freezing level 600 m.

Wednesday
Mostly cloudy. 10 to 25 cm of snow. 30 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C. Freezing level 300 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Closely monitor how the new snow is bonding to the crust.
  • Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind-affected terrain.
  • Approach lee and cross-loaded slopes with caution.

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.