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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 18th, 2023–Apr 19th, 2023

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

Regions

South Coast, Powell River, North Shore, Sasquatch, Sasquatch, Tetrahedron.

Stormy conditions continue, which warrants conservative terrain travel.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

Recent storm snow was reactive to human traffic during Tuesday's stormy weather (e.g., as seen here). We also suspect that a natural avalanche cycle may have occurred out of steep terrain features.

Looking to Wednesday, we expect that natural avalanche activity will subside but that riders could trigger similar avalanches as the storm continues.

Snowpack Summary

The region has seen upwards of 100 cm of snow since the weekend, with another 20 to 30 cm forecast by Wednesday afternoon. All of this snow overlies a hard melt-freeze crust up to at least 1000 m and to ridgetop on sun-exposed slopes and perhaps small surface hoar crystals on shaded slopes sheltered from the wind.

The remainder of the snowpack is well-bonded.

Cornices are large and looming and continue to grow during this stormy weather.

Weather Summary

Tuesday Night

Cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 5 to 10 cm, 30 to 40 km/h southeast wind, treeline temperature -3 °C, freezing level 800 m.

Wednesday

Cloudy with snowfall and late-afternoon clearing, accumulation 15 to 30 cm, 20 to 30 km/h southeast wind, treeline temperature -2 °C, freezing level 1000 m.

Thursday

Mix of sun and cloud with isolated flurries, accumulation 2 to 5 cm, 10 km/h southeast wind, treeline temperature -1 °C, freezing level 1100 m.

Friday

Cloudy with snowfall, accumulation 5 to 10 cm, 20 to 40 km/h south wind, treeline temperature 0 °C, freezing level 1200 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Avoid all avalanche terrain during periods of heavy loading from new snow, wind, or rain.
  • Choose relatively conservative lines and watch for clues of instability.
  • Avoid terrain traps where the consequence of any avalanche could be serious.
  • Pay attention to cornices and give them a wide berth when traveling on or below ridges.

Problems

Storm Slabs

Storm Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer (a slab) of new snow that breaks within new snow or on the old snow surface. Storm-slabs typically last between a few hours and few days (following snowfall). Storm-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.

Loose Wet

Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.