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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 24th, 2023–Jan 25th, 2023

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

Regions

Coquihalla, Harrison-Fraser, Manning, Skagit.

An above freezing layer develops in the alpine on Wednesday promoting settlement in storm snow. Watch for slab development and increasing signs of instability as temperatures penetrate the upper snowpack through the day.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

A few size 1 avalanches were reported within the storm snow. They were suspected to be wind triggered. Backcountry users should expect to see evidence of a natural storm slab avalanche cycle from Tuesday's surprise storm.

Please continue to share any observations or photos on the Mountain Information Network.

Snowpack Summary

30 cm of light unconsolidated snow fell Monday evening. In wind-exposed features at alpine and treeline, new snow covers old wind slabs. 30-50 cm of snow over overlies a thick supportive crust found below 2000 m.

Below this, the snowpack is considered settled. Weak layers exist within the mid and lower snowpack but the thick crusts sitting above them make triggering avalanches on these layers unlikely.

Snowpack depths are roughly 150 cm at treeline and taper rapidly below 1500 m.

Weather Summary

Tuesday Night

Cloudy with isolated flurries, trace accumulation. Westerly ridge top winds 20 km/h gusting 40 km/h. 1500m temperature high of -2C. Freezing levels of 600 m.

Wednesday

Cloudy with sunny periods. Light northwesterly winds occasionally gusting to 30 km/h. 1500m temperature high of +1C. An above freezing layer is present between 1500-2500m.

Thursday

Cloudy with sunny periods. Light northwesterly winds occasionally gusting to 40 km/h. 1500m temperature high of 0C. An above freezing layer is present between 1500-2500m during the day dropping to 800 m overnight.

5 cm of snow is forecast overnight.

Friday

Mix of sun and cloud. Light northwesterly winds occasionally gusting to 30 km/h. 1500m temperature high of -4C. Freezing levels of 1000 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • A moist or wet snow surface, pinwheeling and natural avalanches are all indicators of a weakening snowpack.
  • Watch for signs of slab formation throughout the day.
  • Watch for changing conditions today, storm slabs may become increasingly reactive.

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.

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.