Avalanche forecast

Kootenay Boundary

Feb 23 – 24, 2015Avalanche Canada
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Avalanche danger

Wed
Thu
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
1 · Low
Below
1 · Low
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Highlights

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Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1–2
    Strong NW winds may create isolated pockets of wind slab in wind exposed features Tuesday. It's important to factor these small but potentially touchy wind slabs into your travel plan for the day, especially if you're in complex terrain.

Confidence

Fair - Wind speed and direction is uncertain on Tuesday

Weather Forecast

Tuesday: Increasing cloud cover, light SW winds at valley bottom, strong NW winds at ridgetop. No precipitation, freezing level rising to 1500m. Wednesday: Mostly clear skies, winds decreasing to light NW throughout the day, no precipitation, freezing level rising to 1500m. Thursday: Broken skies, light variable winds at all elevations, no significant precipitation, freezing level rising to 1400m.

Avalanche Summary

Isolated small wind slabs on north aspects were reported Sunday, no other significant avalanche activity to report.

Snowpack Summary

Up to 5cm of snow covers a widespread layer of surface hoar above a crust that extends all the way to ridge crest. The curst is effectively "capping" the snowpack and doing a good job of protecting the buried weak layers bellow. However, I suspect that the mid-January surface hoar layer could still produce an avalanche if given a large enough trigger in the right spot. It can be found down about 1m in the alpine and 50-60cm at treeline. The mid-December crust/facet/surface hoar weakness may persist in the mid to lower snowpack at higher elevations.

Regions covered