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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 2nd, 2023–Jan 3rd, 2023

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

Regions

Northwest Coastal, Kitimat, Nass, Rupert, Seven Sisters, Shames, Stewart, Howson, Ningunsaw, Ningunsaw.

Use extra caution in wind-loaded areas at treeline, where wind slabs have formed over a weak layer of surface hoar.

Carefully assess open areas and convex slopes, especially at treeline, where surface hoar may be preserved.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

On Sunday, there were reports of several small natural wind slab avalanches. Soft slabs developed by wind above a layer of surface hoar were reactive to skier traffic on isolated features and convex rolls up to size 1.

On Friday, a skier accidental persistent slab avalanche was reported. The size 1.5 avalanche slid on a layer of depth hoar and facets close to the ground.

Last week several avalanches were reported at treeline and below on the layer of facets formed during the recent period of arctic air. Though natural activity has tapper off human-triggering remains possible on this layer.

Snowpack Summary

+20 cm of new snow has buried a widespread layer of surface hoar in sheltered areas at treeline. Wind-affected surfaces are found in exposed areas at higher elevations and below treeline cross-loading will likely be found in all coastal inlets due to recent outflow. Below 1000 m a crust exists on or near the surface.

40 to 70cm overlies a weak layer formed during the previous period of arctic air. In the alpine this layer is generally facets but surface hoar could be found. At treeline it is more likely to find surface hoar at this interface in sheltered terrain.

A layer of surface hoar and facets from early December can be found down 70 to 100cm. recently this layer has not been reactive but still produces sudden results in snowpack tests.

Weather Summary

Monday Night

Mainly cloudy with isolated flurries, 1-5 cm accumulation. Ridgetop winds southerly 30 to 50 km/h. A low of -5 at 1500m. Freezing levels 400m.

Tuesday

Cloudy with sunny periods and isolated flurries, trace accumulation. Ridgetop winds southerly 20 km/h. A high of -5 at 1500m. Freezing levels 300m.

Wednesday

Mostly cloudy with sunny periods with isolated flurries, trace accumulation. Ridgetop winds southerly 20 km/h. A high of -6 at 1500m. Freezing levels 300m.

Thursday

Mix of sun and cloud. Ridgetop winds southerly 20 km/h. A high of -5 at 1500m. Freezing levels valley bottom.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • In times of uncertainty conservative terrain choices are our best defense.
  • Expect slab conditions to change drastically as you move into wind exposed terrain.
  • Be careful with wind slabs, especially in steep, unsupported and/or convex terrain features.

Problems

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.