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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 12th, 2026–Mar 13th, 2026

Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
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 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.

Regions

South Columbia, Esplanade, North Monashee, North Selkirk, West Purcell, Badshot-Battle, Central Selkirk, Goat, Retallack.

With uncertainty about diminishing storm instabilities and persistent layers still in play, we're approaching maximum snowpack complexity. It's a good time to travel conservatively.

Confidence

Moderate

  • We are uncertain about how quickly persistent slabs are gaining strength.

Avalanche Summary

Wednesday's reports were a busy mix of storm-induced activity. Notables included ski cut size 1.5 persistent slab on 70 cm-deep surface hoar, a size 1.5 storm slab triggered by a skier in the Esplanades, and explosives-triggered storm/wind and persistent slabs to size 3.5 in the TC Highway corridor.

Persistent slabs eased off a bit, but the problem lingers. This MIN report of large remotely-triggered persistent slabs in the Esplanades captures recent activity well.

Snowpack Summary

Storm snow since March 7 totals 70 - 100 cm around Revelstoke and 30 to 50 cm farther south. It sits on hard old wind effect in exposed terrain treeline and above and on a crust extending to 1800 m in the north and 2200 m in the south. The thicker the crust, the more effectively it caps problems below it.

These problems include three layers in the mid-snowpack, still suspect after a widespread avalanche cycle involved them on the weekend.

  • One or two surface hoar layers buried in February are found 60 to 120 cm deep. In some areas these sit on a thin crust.

  • A deeper, widespread layer buried in late January, made up of surface hoar, facets, and/or a crust, sits 100 to 180 cm deep.

The snowpack below this is generally strong.

Weather Summary

Thursday Night
Mostly cloudy with flurries bringing about 5 cm of new snow, closer to 10 cm north of Revelstoke. 20 to 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind, easing. Treeline temperature -11 °C.

Friday
Mostly cloudy with scattered flurries bringing up to 5 cm of new snow. 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.

Saturday
A mix of sun and cloud with isolated flurries bringing less than 5 cm of new snow, including overnight. 20 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -11 °C.

Sunday
Mostly sunny. 20 to 30 km/h northwest ridgetop wind shifting southwest, increasing. Treeline temperature -13 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Continue to make conservative terrain choices while the storm snow settles and stabilizes.
  • Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind-affected terrain.
  • Fresh snow rests on a problematic persistent slab, don't let good riding lure you into complacency.
  • Be mindful that deep instabilities are still present and have produced recent large avalanches.

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.