Avalanche Forecast

A weak front crossing the region brings clouds and light snow over the weekend.

FRIDAY NIGHT: Clear skies, light northwest wind, treeline temperatures drop to -8 C.

SATURDAY: Sunny in the morning with increasing clouds in the afternoon, moderate west wind, treeline temperatures around -6 C.

SUNDAY: Cloudy with isolated flurries and up to 5 cm of snow, moderate west wind, treeline temperatures around -10 C.

MONDAY: Mix of sun and cloud, light wind, treeline temperatures around -12 C.

No significant avalanche activity has been reported since Tuesday, when there was a cycle of natural wind slab avalanches. Sporadic deep persistent slab avalanche activity was reported 1-2 weeks ago (triggered with heavy loads such as explosives and cornices), but deeper weak layers should be unreactive under the current conditions.

Cold clear weather is forming surface hoar and soft faceted surfaces. Alpine terrain has lingering wind slabs and a crust exists near the surface below 1000 m. 

The middle snowpack is overall well settled. Some isolated surface hoar layers were observed forming in early January and, if preserved, would now be 30-60 cm deep. However, these layers have not been reported in any recent snowpack or avalanche observations. 

The lower snowpack has two decomposing crust layers that have been causing a deep persistent slab problem for most of the past month. The upper crust is 70-140 cm deep in the Smithers area, while the deeper crust at the bottom of the snowpack has been a problem in shallow ranges like the Babines. These layers should be unreactive under the current conditions, but shallow rocky slopes should still be carefully assessed and approached with caution. 

• Be careful with wind loaded pockets, especially near ridge crests and roll-overs.
• Be especially cautious near rock outcroppings, on steep convexities and anywhere the snowpack feels thinner than average.