Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 20th, 2024–Mar 21st, 2024

Alpine

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Alpine

Natural avalanches unlikely.

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, Nass, Rupert, Seven Sisters, Shames, Stewart, Howson, Ningunsaw, Ningunsaw, Ningunsaw.

A widespread surface crust makes for generally safe conditions.

Weak overnight recovery may allow the snow to deteriorate rapidly with daytime warming.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

No new recent avalanches were reported. A few wet loose avalanches (size 1) were observed earlier this week, primarily below treeline and on steep south-facing terrain

The widespread, natural avalanche cycle reported over the weekend appears to have ended.

If you go into the backcountry, please submit your observations to the Mountain Information Network.

Snowpack Summary

A widespread melt-freeze crust exists on the surface at higher elevations. With strong solar warming expected, anticipate the surface crust to weaken at lower elevations and on south-facing slopes throughout the day. Isothermal snowpack still exists at lower elevations.

Various weak layers, including crusts, facets, and/or surface hoar exist approximately 90 and 180 cm below the surface.

Weather Summary

Wednesday Night

Mostly clear with no precipitation. 10 to 30 km/h northeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 0 °C. Freezing level near 1000 m.

Thursday

Mostly sunny with no precipitation. 10 to 20 km/h east ridegtop wind. Treeline temperature 3 °C. Freezing level rising near 1500 m.

Friday

Mostly sunny. 20 to 40 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C. Freezing level near 800 m.

Saturday

Mostly sunny. 30 to 50 km/h northeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C. Freezing level near 500 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

When a thick, melt-freeze surface crust is present, avalanche activity is unlikely.
Keep in mind that human triggering potential persists as natural avalanching tapers off.
A moist or wet snow surface, pinwheeling and natural avalanches are all indicators of a weakening snowpack.

Problems

Loose Wet

Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.

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.