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

Dec 1st, 2023–Dec 2nd, 2023

Alpine
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Treeline
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
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.
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, Brandywine, Garibaldi, Powell River, Tantalus, North Shore, Sasquatch, Sasquatch, Sky Pilot, Tetrahedron.

730am update: Winter has returned! Be patient and avoid avalanche terrain while the storm snow settles. Early season hazards are still lurking below the surface.

Confidence

Low

Avalanche Summary

Expect avalanche activity to be widespread as this new storm dumps a large amount of snow over a thin, early season snowpack.

See this MIN post regarding touchy conditions on Mt. Seymour on Friday.

Snowpack Summary

Up to 50 cm of new snow has introduced rapid change to the thin, early season snowpack. In the alpine and upper treeline the new snow could form rider triggerable storm slabs on specific slopes that are above threshold.

The new snow is falling on a variety of early season surfaces, including crusts and 5-15 cm of recent snow. Previously, snow coverage in the region was generally thin, patchy and showing lots of ground roughness. Average snowpack depths at treeline ranged from 20 to 60 cm and tapered off rapidly below treeline.

Weather Summary

Friday Night

Cloudy. 30-50 cm of snow expected, with the highest amounts on the immediate coast. Strong south or southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature around -3°C.

Saturday

Cloudy. 5-10 cm of snow expected. Moderate Southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature around -5°C.

Sunday

Cloudy. 10-15 cm of new snow expected. Moderate southwest ridgetop wind. Freezing level rising to 1250 m.

Monday

Cloudy. Moderate to heavy rain expected. Moderate to strong south or southwest ridgetop wind. Freezing level rising to 2750m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Be careful to keep storm day fever from luring you out into bigger terrain features.
  • Avoid areas with overhead hazard.
  • Avoid terrain traps where the consequence of any avalanche could be serious.

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.