Regions
Kootenay Boundary.
Confidence
Fair - Timing or intensity of solar radiation is uncertain
Weather Forecast
Friday: Dry with a mix of sun and cloud. Freezing level 2100 m. Ridgetop winds 20-30 km/h from the west. Saturday: Starting out sunny, clouding over later on with a chance of showers. Freezing level around 1800 m. Calm winds. Sunday: Dry with a mix of sun and cloud. Freezing level 1900 m. Calm winds.
Avalanche Summary
No avalanches were reported on Wednesday. On Tuesday, high daytime temperatures triggered numerous loose wet avalanches up to size 1.5 on all aspects and at all elevations.
Snowpack Summary
Pronounced warming in the upper snowpack at all elevations has made the top 50 cm or more of the snowpack moist. Subsequent cooler temperatures have re-frozen the surface at higher elevations, although solar aspects at all elevations continue to undergo daily melt-freeze cycles. Several older melt-freeze crusts in the upper 40 cm are breaking down, although deeper crusts are reported to still be hard. The late January/early February persistent weak layer is deeply buried, but has not produced avalanches in this region for some time now.
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.