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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 24th, 2023–Mar 25th, 2023

Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

South Coast Inland, Birkenhead, Duffey, South Chilcotin, Stein, Taseko.

Avoid rocky, shallow, or thin-to-thick snowpack areas in the alpine where triggering slabs is more likely.

When a thick, melt-freeze surface crust is present, avalanche activity is unlikely.

Confidence

High

Avalanche Summary

A naturally triggered size 2 wet loose avalanche was reported on a northwest aspect in the alpine on Thursday. The avalanche stepped-down to weak facets at the bottom of the snowpack.

On Wednesday, a cornice fall entrained a mass of snow which then triggered a size 3 deep persistent slab avalanche. It occurred at 2350 m on a north east facing slope.

A size 2.5 deep persistent slab avalanche was reported Tuesday in the South Chilcotin range, around 2200 m on a south-facing slope.

Snowpack Summary

5-10 cm of new snow and light to moderate southwest wind on Thursday night.

Below the new snow is a melt freeze crust exists on all aspects at treeline and below, and on solar aspects to mountain top. The only exception is high north aspects which had a mixture of decomposing dry snow and small surface hoar in isolated locations.

The mid-snowpack is generally strong but the lower snowpack is a different story..

A weak layer of sugary facets is still prominent at the base of the snowpack. Small surface avalanches and cornice falls are the most likely things to trigger this layer, which would result in a very large and destructive avalanche.

However, there remains a significant concern for human triggering in rocky, shallow, or thin-to-thick snowpack areas at treeline and above.

Weather Summary

Friday Night

Mostly cloudy with isolated flurries; 0-10 cm / 10 km/h southwest ridgetop wind / Low temperature at treeline around -7 C / Freezing level valley bottom

Saturday

Mostly cloudy with isolated flurries; 0-3 cm / 10 km/h southwest ridgetop wind / High temperature at treeline around -4 C / Freezing level 1300 m

Sunday

Mix of sun and cloud / 10 km/h southwest ridgetop wind / High temperature at treeline around -4 C / Freezing level 1300 m

Monday

Sunny / 20 km/h east ridgetop wind / High temperature at treeline around -1 C / Freezing level 1500 m

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • In areas where deep persistent slabs may exist, avoid shallow or variable depth snowpacks and unsupported terrain features.
  • Avoid exposure to slopes that have cornices overhead.
  • When a thick, melt-freeze surface crust is present, avalanche activity is unlikely.

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.