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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 1st, 2026–Apr 2nd, 2026

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

Regions

Northwest Coastal, Northwest Inland, Boundary, Kitimat, Nass, Rupert, Seven Sisters, Shames, Stewart, Howson, Ningunsaw.

We have some uncertainty in the likelihood and distribution of persistent slabs. In times of uncertainty, conservative terrain choices are the best defense.

Confidence

Moderate

  • We are confident that there are persistent slabs in the snowpack, but uncertain about how likely they are to trigger.

Avalanche Summary

On Tuesday, a couple of natural wind slabs, size 2-2.5 were observed on east aspects in the alpine.

Several recent natural cornice falls have been large enough that even without triggering a slab they were size 2.5 or greater.

A handful of very large persistent slab avalanches have been reported throughout the region in recent days. Some are suspected to have run on the mid-March layer, and others even deeper. Most of these avalanches were triggered by cornices.

Snowpack Summary

5-10 cm of new snow sits over firm, wind-affected surfaces. A sun crust could be on or near the surface. Cornices are large and overhanging.

A layer of facets and/or surface hoar from earlier in March can be found 50 to 100 cm deep.

Several older persistent weak layers are buried up to 250 cm deep. While triggering these layers is trending toward unlikely, they present a low-probability, high-consequence problem.

Weather Summary

Wednesday Night
Mostly clear skies. 10 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C.

Thursday
Mostly sunny. 20 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C.

Friday
Mostly cloudy. 5 to 10 cm of snow. 50 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C.

Saturday
Mostly cloudy. 2 to 5 cm of snow. 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Be aware of the potential for large, destructive avalanches due to deeply buried weak layers.
  • In times of uncertainty, conservative terrain choices are our best defense.
  • Carefully evaluate steep lines for wind slabs.
  • Pay attention to cornices and give them a wide berth when traveling on or below ridges.

Problems

Persistent Slabs

Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.

Wind Slabs

Wind Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) formed by the wind. Wind typically transports snow from the upwind sides of terrain features and deposits snow on the downwind side. Wind slabs are often smooth and rounded and sometimes sound hollow, and can range from soft to hard. Wind slabs that form over a persistent weak layer (surface hoar, depth hoar, or near-surface facets) may be termed Persistent Slabs or may develop into Persistent Slabs.