Avalanche forecast

Northwest Coastal

Jan 13 – 14, 2015Avalanche Canada
View on map
Archived · expired 12 years ago

Avalanche danger

Thu
Fri
Alpine
3 · Considerable
Treeline
3 · Considerable
Below
2 · Moderate
Open full map

Highlights

The December week layer may still be reactive to moderate loads. Continue to make conservative choices as the new snow and wind comes into the region.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible - Likely
    Size
    1–4
    New snow with south winds will produce windslabs in the alpine and at tree line on lee features.  A small avalanche might trigger deeply buried weak layers.

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Unlikely - Possible
    Size
    2–5
    We haven't seen any activity on this layer for a while, but it's still lurking down there waiting for trigger.

Confidence

Fair - Due to the number and quality of field observations

Weather Forecast

A Pacific frontal system is moving through the forecast area bringing snow to higher elevations and snow flurries mixed with freezing rain to lower elevations. the North coast may see up to 25 cm of snow at higher elevation and rain up to 1500m. Winds are forecast to be light to moderate from the south throughout the forecast period. Wednesday will see a bit of clearing before the next pulse of moisture arrives later in the day. Freezing levels may spike close to 2000m as the system moves through.

Avalanche Summary

No avalanches reported yesterday, but field reports indicate the instability still exists.  Shooting cracks and large settlements reported below 700 metres from a field trip yesterday.

Snowpack Summary

Strong winds have redistributed the recent storm snow, and rain in some areas has produced a surface crust layer that will be of concern with future snow loading. A buried surface hoar layer in the mid-snowpack is still on the radar in some northern sections  and the mid December crust can still be found in the middle of the snowpack. This layer has been reported to be sandwiched between facets and surface hoar in some places. The November crust near the bottom of the snowpack is generally well bonded but may still be reactive in areas with shallow snowpack.

Regions covered