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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 4th, 2023–Mar 5th, 2023

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

Regions

Yukon, Tutshi, Wheaton, White Pass East, White Pass West.

Be suspicious of areas where the wind is actively depositing snow.

Strong wind can make windslabs in less common areas, like part way down large slopes, and on steep cut banks.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

A natural avalanche cycle up to size 3 has been observed from the highway in the inland areas around Paddy peak. We suspect that some of these may include step-downs to buried weak layers.

On Friday, our field team also observed new windslab avalanches up to size 2 and loose snow sluffing from steep alpine terrain around the White Pass.

Snowpack Summary

Recent snow has been stiffened at the surface in exposed areas and transported into wind slabs by strong outflow wind at all exposed elevations.

The mid snowpack is generally hard with a couple of crusts buried 60+ cm and 100+ cm deep, these have been problematic on north to east aspects as high as 1700 m, where they are covered in an overlying layer of weak surface hoar crystals. In inland areas these weak layers are closer to the surface and are easier to trigger.

At the base of the snowpack large sugary crystals persist.

Weather Summary

Saturday night

Possible flurries. Moderate to strong northeasterly wind. -20 ºC.

Sunday

Sunny. Moderate to strong northeasterly wind. Alpine temperature -16 ºC.

Monday

Mostly cloudy. Snow beginning in the afternoon, up to 5 cm. Strong northerly wind. Inversion, alpine high -10 ºC.

Tuesday

Mostly sunny. Strong northerly outflow wind. Alpine high -15 ºC.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Seek out sheltered terrain where new snow hasn't been wind-affected.
  • If triggered, wind slabs avalanches may step down to deeper layers resulting in larger avalanches.
  • Avoid freshly wind loaded features, especially near ridge crests, roll-overs and in steep terrain.

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.