Kootenay Boundary

It's early in the season but there is more than enough snow for avalanches. New wind slabs are expected to have formed at higher elevations.  If you are out in the mountains, please post your observations to the Mountain Information Network.

Poor - Due to the number of field observations

The cold Arctic air will be the dominant feature for the next couple days. On Wednesday, expect dry and sunny conditions with freezing levels below valley bottom. In the morning, alpine winds are expected to be strong from NE but will ease by the end of the day. On Thursday and Friday, dry and sunny conditions continue with light NE winds. On Friday, models are suggesting that a layer of warm air aloft will reach the region and a strong temperature inversion is possible.

No recent avalanches have been reported. If you are out in the mountains, please send us your observations.

10-20cm of new snowfall overlies a highly variable surface which may include surface hoar and/or facetted snow, a thick rain crust at lower elevations, a sun crust on steep south facing slopes, or wind-affected snow in exposed alpine terrain. At treeline elevations, the snowpack appears to be 100 to 150cm deep. There is a thick crust from mid-November in the middle of the snowpack. The limited reports we have received suggest that this crust is well bonded but you should investigate the snowpack in your local area before committing yourself to avalanche terrain. New wind slabs may exist on a variety of aspects due to shifting winds and these slabs may be sensitive to human-triggering for several days.