Avalanche Forecast

Issued: Mar 24th, 2012 10:49AM

The alpine rating is moderate, the treeline rating is moderate, and the below treeline rating is low. Known problems include Loose Wet, Wind Slabs and Cornices.

mpeter, Avalanche Canada

Sea To Sky.

Be aware of strong solar radiation destabilizing the surface snow when the sun pokes out.

Summary

Confidence

Fair - Timing or intensity of solar radiation is uncertain

Weather Forecast

Sunday: Expect a dry day, with clouds building late in the day. Winds remain light southerly with freezing levels reaching 1800m. Monday: Mixed skies should give way to mostly cloudy conditions and a chance of flurries later in the day and freezing levels reaching 1500m. Winds continue southerly and remain light. Tuesday: Continued light precipitation overnight as freezing levels climb to 1400m. Winds increase to strong southerlies by the afternoon.

Avalanche Summary

Recent avalanche activity includes loose moist sluffs to size 2.0 from daytime warming as well as one size 2.0 natural slab on a northeast aspect at 1700m.

Snowpack Summary

The warm temperatures have brought us into a spring melt freeze cycle with the surface snow softening with daytime warming on solar aspects then crusting overnight as temperatures dip back below freezing. Cornices loom in the alpine and old windslabs linger on lee aspects in the alpine and open treeline. The vast amount of recent storm snow continues to settle and bond while deeper in the snowpack the persistent weakness from mid February remains a concern due to continued sudden planar test results.

Problems

Loose Wet

Loose wet avalanches are likely on steep sun-exposed slopes during the day. There is potential for these heavy wet slides to step down to deeper weaknesses and create a large slab avalanche.

Aspects: North, North East, East, South East.

Elevations: All elevations.

Likelihood

Likely

Expected Size

1 - 4

Wind Slabs

Wind slabs lurk below ridges, behind terrain features and in gullies. They may be buried by new snow, making them hard to spot.

Aspects: North, North East, East.

Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.

Likelihood

Possible - Likely

Expected Size

1 - 4

Cornices

Cornices are very large and may become more fragile with daytime warming

Aspects: North, North East, East.

Elevations: Alpine.

Likelihood

Possible

Expected Size

1 - 6

Valid until: Mar 25th, 2012 9:00AM