Avalanche Forecast

Over the past few days, there have been a few reports of natural wind slab avalanches (size 2 to 3) and cornice failures. We suspect that recent warm weather caused some wet avalanches. While there have been no recent reports of persistent slab avalanches, the photo below shows a good example of one from last week near Barkerville.

Avalanches will become less likely with the cooling trend, with the lingering possibility of persistent slabs being the main problem.

Light snowfall with northeast winds will create a dusting of soft snow above the wet and settled storm snow from the past week. We expect a frozen crust layer to form in most terrain, except possibly on shaded alpine slopes.

A persistent weak layer from early March, 40 to 80 cm deep, is most likely found as surface hoar on sheltered north and east aspects at treeline and above. Its distribution is variable, and there have been no substantial reports of recent avalanches, but it should still be considered when evaluating slopes.

Wednesday Night

Cloudy with 0 to 5 cm of snow. 50 km/h northeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C as freezing level drops to valley bottom.

Thursday

Cloudy with 0 to 5 cm of snow, except for 10 to 15 cm possible along the eastern slopes of the Rockies. 50 km/h northeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C.

Friday

Mostly cloudy with 5 to 10 cm of snow. 40 km/h northeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.

Saturday

Mix of sun and cloud. 10 km/h east ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Uncertainty is best managed through conservative terrain choices.
• Watch for signs of instability like whumpfing, hollow sounds, shooting cracks, or recent avalanches.
• Surface hoar distribution is highly variable. Avoid generalizing your observations.
• Carefully evaluate big and steep terrain features before committing to them.