Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 8th, 2024–Feb 9th, 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, 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.

Regions

North Columbia, South Columbia, Esplanade, Jordan, North Monashee, North Selkirk, Shuswap, West Purcell, Badshot-Battle, Central Selkirk, Goat, Gold, North Okanagan, Valhalla, Whatshan.

Heightened avalanche conditions exist in the alpine where the potential for human-triggering weak layers remains possible and stubborn wind slabs are catching users off guard.

Confidence

High

Avalanche Summary

On Wednesday, two skier accidental, size 2, wind slab avalanches were reported on northerly aspects in the alpine. They occurred in steep wind-loaded terrain and released above the crust. See MIN's here and here for details and photos.

On Monday, a MIN from a neighboring region reported a group bootpacking a couloir that triggered size 3 avalanche on a south-facing slope at 2600 m. This is evidence that where the crust isn't present the persistent problem remains a concern.

Snowpack Summary

Anywhere from 15 to 35 cm of dry snow sits atop a widespread, hard crust. In general, the crust is strong and thick enough to be supportive to travel on up to 2400 m where it tapers out.

In the mid and lower snowpack, various weak layers persist in areas, however, triggering any of these layers is unlikely where they are capped by the supportive crust above.

Weather Summary

Thursday Night

Partly cloudy, 10 to 20 km/h northwest ridgetop winds, treeline temperature -10 °C.

Friday

Mainly clear skies. 10 to 25 km/h northwest ridgetop winds. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

Saturday

A mix of sun and cloud. 20 to 40 km/h northwest ridgetop winds. Treeline temperature -7 °C.

Sunday

Partly cloudy with 5 to 10 cm, 30 to 50 km/h west ridgetop winds, treeline temperature -10 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Be carefull around freshly wind loaded features.
Be aware of the potential for loose avalanches in steep terrain where snow hasn't formed a slab.
Avalanche hazard may have improved, but be mindful that deep instabilities are still present.

Problems

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.

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.

Loose Dry

Loose Dry avalanches are the release of dry unconsolidated snow and typically occur within layers of soft snow near the surface of the snowpack. These avalanches start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-dry avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs.