Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 7th, 2026–Feb 8th, 2026

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.

Alpine

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Regions

Kootenay Boundary, Purcells, Bonnington, Grohman, Kootenay Pass, Norns, Ymir, Crawford, Kokanee, Retallack, Valhalla, Whatshan.

New snow incrementally loads a weak layer. We have uncertainty about where this layer is triggerable and when the tipping point will be. The best defense is conservative terrain choices.

Confidence

Moderate

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

Avalanche Summary

In the warm weather on Thursday and Friday, loose wet avalanches were observed on steep solar aspects, average size 1 but up to size 2.

Over the past week and as recently as Thursday, several natural and human-triggered persistent slab avalanches size 1–2 have occurred across the region, failing on the late-January layer. Most of these avalanches have occurred near treeline.

Snowpack Summary

10 to 15 cm of new snow accumulates over mostly crusty surfaces. The old surface may remain dry on the highest north aspects and moist at low elevations.

A widespread weak layer is buried 20 to 30 cm deep. It formed in late January and consists of surface hoar on a melt-freeze crust, with facets below. Check out the snowpack test results on this layer in this MIN from Friday. This layer is expected to become even more concerning as it gets buried deeper.

The mid and lower snowpack remain well settled, with no significant concerns at this time.

Weather Summary

Saturday Night
Cloudy. 10 cm of snow. 50 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C. Freezing level 1600 m.

Sunday
Mostly sunny. 20 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C. Freezing level 1600 m.

Monday
Mix of sun and clouds. 20 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C. Freezing level 1300 m.

Tuesday
Mostly cloudy. 4 to 5 cm of snow. 20 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C. Freezing level 1300 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Avoid freshly wind-loaded terrain features.
Avalanche activity is unlikely when a thick melt-freeze crust is present on the snow surface.
Uncertainty is best managed through conservative terrain choices.

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.