Avalanche Forecast
Regions: Babine, East Stikine, Howson, Hudson Bay, Kispiox, Microwave-Sinclair, Ningunsaw, North Bulkley, Northwest Inland, South Bulkley, Telkwa, West Stikine.
Wind slabs at upper elevations will be the main concern.
A thick surface crust will present challenging travel conditions at lower elevations.
Confidence
Low
Avalanche Summary
A natural avalanche cycle occurred earlier in the week as rain and warm temperatures infiltrated the region. Slab avalanches up to size 3 were observed in the Smithers and Seaton areas.
Looking forward, lingering pockets of wind slab at upper elevations will be the main concern.
If you head to the backcountry please consider submitting your observations to the Mountain Information Network.
Snowpack Summary
Recent snowfall overlies a crust or moist snow from rain earlier in the week. Strong winds will create heavily wind-affected surfaces and redistribute dry snow into wind slabs.
We suspect two surface hoar layers in the mid-snowpack have been cleaned out by the rain.
Deeper in the snowpack, a rain crust from early November seems to be bonding well to the surrounding snow.
Weather Summary
Saturday Night
Mainly cloudy. 15 to 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C.
Sunday
A mix of sun and cloud. 25 to 40 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.
Monday
Mainly clear. 20 to 40 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C.
Tuesday
A mix of sun and cloud. 25 to 40 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
Terrain and Travel Advice
- Be careful as you transition into wind-affected terrain.
- Avalanche activity is unlikely when a thick melt-freeze crust is present on the snow surface.
Avalanche Problems
Wind Slabs
Where dry storm snow exists, strong wind may have formed wind slabs in lee areas.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.
Likelihood: Possible
Expected Size: 1 - 2