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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 14th, 2024–Dec 15th, 2024

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

Regions

Northwest Coastal, Boundary, Kitimat, Rupert, Shames, Stewart, Ningunsaw, Ningunsaw, Ningunsaw.

Buried surface hoar may make wind slabs more reactive.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

On Friday and Thursday, north of Stewart, several explosive and skier-triggered wind slab avalanches were triggered up to size 1.5.

With more snow and moderate wind in the forecast, triggering wind slab avalanches will remain possible, especially in areas where they overlie surface hoar.

Snowpack Summary

On the surface, around 20 to 30 cm of snow has combined over the last two storms. This snow sits on a thick rain crust which may also have weak surface hoar or facets overlying it in some areas.

Recent and forecast winds have varied in direction, so expect wind slabs on all aspects. These slabs will likely be more reactive where they overlie the weak surface hoar and facets.

The mid and lower snowpack are not concerning at this time, and are made up of various hard layers, or moist snow at lower elevations.

This MIN report has a great description of the snow and ski conditions at Shames from last Friday.

Weather Summary

Saturday Night

Mostly cloudy with 0 to 5 cm of snow. 30 to 40 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C.

Sunday

A mix of sun and cloud. 15 to 25 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

Monday

Mostly sunny. 40 to 50 km/h southeast then east ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C.

Tuesday

A mix of sun and cloud. 40 to 50 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Be careful as you transition into wind-affected terrain.
  • Surface hoar distribution is highly variable. Avoid generalizing your observations.
  • Use ridges or ribs to avoid areas of wind-loaded snow.

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.