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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 8th, 2026–Jan 9th, 2026

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

Regions

Vancouver Island, East Island, North Island, South Island, West Island.

Wind and light snowfall through the day Friday will continue to build thin wind slabs at upper elevations.

Confidence

Moderate

  • Forecast precipitation (either snow or rain) amounts are uncertain.

Avalanche Summary

The AvCan field team observed small natural wind slab avalanches on Mount Arrowsmith during the peak of Tuesday’s storm. Observations from the Prince of Wales Range on Wednesday suggest these slabs were becoming better bonded.

Looking ahead, wind slabs should continue to stabilize but may still be possible to trigger on some steep alpine features.

Snowpack Summary

There is likely a few centimetres of new snow sitting over wind-affected snow in exposed areas treeline and above. In sheltered areas, 30 to 40 cm of recent snow sits on a thick rain crust that formed over the weekend. The mid and lower snowpack are well settled and dense, with treeline depths averaging 100 to 150 cm.

Weather Summary

Thursday Night

Cloudy. 2 to 5 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C. Freezing level 900 m.

Friday

Cloudy. 2 to 4 mm of precipitation as snow or rain at treeline. 50 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 0 °C. Freezing level 1300 m.

Saturday

Mostly cloudy. 20 to 40 mm of precipitation as snow or rain at treeline. 60 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 1 °C. Freezing level 1500 m.

Sunday

Mostly cloudy. 10 to 30 mm of rain at treeline. 50 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 2 °C. Freezing level 1900 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Pay attention to isolated wind affected features in the alpine, as well as cross-loaded features at treeline.
  • Closely monitor how the new snow is bonding to the crust.

Problems

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.