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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 4th, 2024–Apr 5th, 2024

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

Regions

South Coast Inland, Birkenhead, Duffey, South Chilcotin, Stein, Taseko.

Strong solar radiation will likely impact the recent storm snow.

Be alert to conditions that change with elevation, wind, and sun exposure.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

On Wednesday, skiers triggered small storm / wind slabs on steep convexities at treeline and dry loose avalanches on steep sheltered slopes throughout the region. A natural avalanche cycle occurred Tuesday night during the storm where numerous slabs and loose dry avalanches (size 1 to 2) were triggered over steep northerly alpine terrain.

Snowpack Summary

20 to 40 cm of recent snow is found above 1600 m with greater amounts in northerly alpine terrain. This overlies a moist snow surface or a crust on all aspects, except north-facing slopes above 2000 m where dry snow remained. Recent reverse-loading has redistributed snow into southerly alpine slopes. The storm snow is rapidly settling at treeline and becoming moist on solar aspects.

The facet/crust layer that produced large avalanches during early March is buried 80-150 cm deep. While no recent avalanche activity has been observed on this layer, it continues to produce concerning snowpack test results. It has become a low-probability, high-consequence problem on north-facing slopes above 2000 m.

Weather Summary

Thursday Night

Partly cloudy. 25 to 35 km/h northeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C. Freezing level 1000 m.

Friday

Mostly sunny. 10 to 20 km/h northeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature rising to +2 °C. Freezing level rising to 1800 m.

Saturday

Partly cloudy with isolated flurries. 20 to 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C. Freezing level 1500 m.

Sunday

Partly cloudy with isolated flurries. 20 to 30 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -3 °C. Freezing level 1500 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Remember that in the spring strong solar radiation and warm temperatures can weaken the snow in a matter of minutes.
  • Minimize exposure to steep, sun exposed slopes, especially when the solar radiation is strong.
  • Be carefull around freshly wind loaded features.
  • Use caution on large alpine slopes, especially around thin areas that may propagate to deeper instabilities.

Problems

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.

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.

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.