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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 12th, 2026–Mar 13th, 2026

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

Regions

Northwest Coastal, Northwest Inland, Boundary, Kitimat, Nass, Rupert, Seven Sisters, Shames, Stewart, Howson.

Isolated wind slabs persist in the alpine. Human triggering remains possible.

Confidence

Moderate

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

Avalanche Summary

On Wednesday, A few small (size 1) skier triggered wind slab avalanches where reported on north aspect terrain between 1200 and 1400 meters.

On Tuesday, in the Ningunsaw west of highway 37 a large natural avalanche was reported that sympathetically released a second large avalanche. It is unclear if the release was on a persistent weak layer but the crown depth appeared to be very deep.

Reports of natural activity has tapered, but triggering of avalanches is still possible.

Snowpack Summary

The upper snowpack presents 20 to 50 cm of mostly light dry snow, in specific areas that are exposed to the wind, that new snow is wind pressed, stiffening and is forming soft wind slabs. The new snow overlies a heavily wind affected upper snowpack at treeline and above.

Below treeline a surface crust formed following the March 7 warming event and tapers above roughly 1600 m.

The mid snowpack, down an estimated 90 to 130 cm, weak layers of surface hoar, facets and crusts remain a concern especially where there is no supportive crust. Triggering of these layers is becoming less likely, but still remain at a depth where human triggering is possible.

The remaining snowpack is generally well settled and well bonded.

Weather Summary

Thursday Night
Partly cloudy. 1 to 2 cm of snow. 20 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C.

Friday
Mix of sun and clouds. 1 to 4 cm of snow. 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

Saturday
Mix of sun and clouds. 5 to 10 cm of snow. 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

Sunday
Mostly cloudy. 4 to 10 cm of snow. 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind-affected terrain.
  • If triggered, wind slabs may step down to deeper layers, causing larger avalanches.
  • Continue to make conservative terrain choices while the storm snow settles and stabilizes.
  • Use appropriate sluff management techniques.

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.

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.