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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 24th, 2025–Apr 25th, 2025

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

Regions

Sea To Sky, South Coast Inland, Brandywine, Garibaldi, Homathko, Spearhead, Tantalus, Birkenhead, Duffey, South Chilcotin, Stein, Taseko.

Start early and time your exposure to be out of serious avalanche terrain during the hottest parts of the day.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

On Tuesday and Wednesday, large cornices were triggered using explosives near Whistler. A natural cornice fall was also observed. None of these incidents triggered a slab below.

The likelihood of wet loose avalanches and cornice falls is expected to increase with the forecast of strong sun, high freezing levels, and a limited overnight refreeze.

Snowpack Summary

The snowpack is generally strong, with a typical spring diurnal pattern: daytime warming melts and softens the upper snowpack, then overnight cooling usually forms a hard crust at higher elevations. Lower elevations likely will not refreeze, and are experiencing an all-melt, no freeze scenario, and are melting out quickly. Isothermal snow conditions exist below 1500 m.

Dormant weak layers may still exist in isolated alpine terrain, but likely require a very heavy trigger, such as a cornice fall. It's a good idea to keep this on your radar with forecast freezing levels to 2700 m, strong sun, and a limited overnight refreeze.

Weather Summary

Thursday Night

Clear. 25 to 30 km/h southeast ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 5 °C. Freezing level 2500 m.

Friday

Mostly sunny. 5 to 10 km/h variable ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 7 °C. Freezing level 2700 m.

Saturday

Sunny. 10 to 20 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 6 °C. Freezing level 2500 m.

Sunday

Sunny. 15 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature 6 °C. Freezing level 2500 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Start your day early and be out of avalanche terrain during the heat of the day.
  • Pay attention to cornices and give them a wide berth when traveling on or below ridges.
  • Avalanche activity is unlikely when a thick melt-freeze crust is present on the snow surface.

Problems

Cornices

Cornice Fall is the release of an overhanging mass of snow that forms as the wind moves snow over a sharp terrain feature, such as a ridge, and deposits snow on the downwind (leeward) side. Cornices range in size from small wind drifts of soft snow to large overhangs of hard snow that are 30 feet (10 meters) or taller. They can break off the terrain suddenly and pull back onto the ridge top and catch people by surprise even on the flat ground above the slope. Even small cornices can have enough mass to be destructive and deadly. Cornice Fall can entrain loose surface snow or trigger slab avalanches.

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.