Dashboard Regions Weather Stations Radar Alerts Glossary
Contact About
Log In

Register for an account and never miss a forecast again!

Register

Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 18th, 2022–Mar 19th, 2022

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

Regions

South Coast.

 Use extra caution near ridge crests and steep roll overs where storm slab avalanches are likely to be largest and most reactive. 

Confidence

Moderate - We are confident the likelihood of avalanche will increase with the arrival of the forecast weather.

Weather Forecast

Friday night: stormy with around 20 cm of snow at higher elevations. Moderate southeast winds and a low of -1 at 1200 m.

Saturday: stormy with around 20 cm of new snow at higher elevations. Moderate southerly winds . Freezing level around 1400 m.

Sunday: mostly cloudy with flurries bringing up to 10cm of snow. Freezing level around 800 m. Light southerly winds.

Monday: stormy with up to 30 cm of snow. Light to moderate southeast winds and freezing levels around 1100 m.

Avalanche Summary

On Thursday ski cutting produced loose dry avalanches up to size 1.5 at treeline. We suspect rider triggerable storm slabs will be found at treeline and above on Saturday.

Snowpack Summary

New storm slabs will form over Friday night and during the day on Saturday. around 20 cm overlies a crust from the middle of the month. Below this crust 50 to 70 cm overlies another melt-freeze crust which exists at all elevations and on all aspects except for high elevation north aspects. The snowpack is considered well-settled and strong below this crust. 

Terrain and Travel

  • Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind affected terrain.
  • Storm slab size and sensitivity to triggering will likely increase through the day.
  • As surface loses cohesion due to melting, loose wet avalanches become common in steeper terrain.

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.