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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 24th, 2014–Jan 25th, 2014

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 unlikely.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

South Coast.

Check out the latest blog post on deep persistent slab problems.

Confidence

Good

Weather Forecast

Saturday: Sunny with possible morning valley fog. Light alpine winds. Freezing level as high as 3200m with alpine temperature reaching +10 C, but cooler in valley bottoms. Sunday: Sunny with cloudy periods and possible morning valley fog. Light northerly alpine winds. Freezing level as high as 2700m with alpine temperature reaching +5 C, but cooler in valley bottoms. Monday: Sunny. Light northerly alpine winds. Freezing level around 1200m.

Avalanche Summary

Reports from the Duffy Lake area on Wednesday include two natural Size 2.5 deep persistent slab avalanches on a SE facing alpine slope.

Snowpack Summary

The surface snow is likely undergoing a melt-freeze cycle on all but high elevation shady aspects, while the entire snowpack may even be trending isothermal at lower elevations. On shady aspects expect to find faceted powder; however, in exposed areas winds have scoured windward slopes, left deep drifts on lee aspects, and and sculpted sastrugi. The record low snowpack is generally well settled and strong; however, a facet/crust combo from late November down approximately 100-120 cm at treeline and alpine elevations continues to give sudden results in snowpack tests. Facets and depth hoar at the base of the snowpack remain a concern on slopes with a shallow and variable snowpack in the Duffey Lake and Chilcotin areas.

Problems

Deep Persistent Slabs

Deep Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a thick cohesive layer of hard snow (a slab), when the bond breaks between the slab and an underlying persistent weak layer deep in the snowpack. The most common persistent weak layers involved in deep, persistent slabs are depth hoar or facets surrounding a deeply buried crust. Deep Persistent Slabs are typically hard to trigger, are very destructive and dangerous due to the large mass of snow involved, and can persist for months once developed. They are often triggered from areas where the snow is shallow and weak, and are particularly difficult to forecast for and manage.

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.