Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 8th, 2026–Mar 9th, 2026

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Regions

Kootenay Boundary, Purcells, Bonnington, Grohman, Kootenay Pass, Norns, Rossland, Ymir, Crawford, St. Mary, Kokanee, Valhalla.

Buried persistent weak layers continue to drive the hazard. Stick to conservative terrain and avoid slopes with overhead exposure.

Fresh wind slabs may be reactive at higher elevations.

Confidence

Moderate

We are confident that there are persistent slabs in the snowpack, but uncertain about how likely they are to trigger.
We are uncertain due to the variability of wind effect on the snowpack.

Avalanche Summary

On Saturday, small wind-affected pockets remained reactive to rider traffic.

A natural size 2.5 persistent slab occurred on a southeast-facing treeline slope during Saturday's warm temperatures. On Thursday, a snowcat remotely triggered a large persistent slab on an east-facing treeline slope. While reports of persistent slab activity are tapering, human-triggered avalanches are still expected.

Snowpack Summary

Strong west winds have likely formed wind slabs at treeline and above over a new surface hoar or crust layer. At lower elevations, rain has likely created a supportive surface crust.

In the top 100 cm of the snowpack, there are multiple persistent weak layers of surface hoar and/or facets/crusts. The majority of the recent large and destructive avalanches occurred on well-preserved surface hoar in sheltered areas at treeline and below.

The remaining snowpack has no current layers of concern.

Weather Summary

Sunday Night
Mostly clear skies. 1 cm of snow. 40 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C.

Monday
Mostly cloudy. 1 to 2 cm of snow. 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.

Tuesday
Mix of sun and clouds. 1 to 5 cm of snow. 20 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C.

Wednesday
Mostly cloudy. 5 to 10 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -9 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Make conservative terrain choices and avoid overhead hazard.
Be aware of the potential for remote triggering and large avalanches due to buried surface hoar.
Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind-affected terrain.

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.