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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Nov 30th, 2019–Dec 1st, 2019

Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
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

Cariboos.

Soak up the sunshine, take stock of early season snowpack variability, and monitor for lingering pockets of wind slab in the alpine.

Share what you see in the mountains this weekend via the MIN!

Confidence

Moderate - Confidence is due to a stable weather pattern with little change expected. Uncertainty is due to the limited number of field observations.

Weather Forecast

Saturday night: Mostly clear skies, alpine temperature -10 C, light southwest wind, no precipitation.

Sunday: Mix of sun and cloud, alpine temperature -10 C, light to moderate southwest wind, no precipitation.

Monday: Mostly cloudy, alpine temperature -8 C, moderate to strong southwest wind, light snow possible with 2-5 cm of accumulation.

Tuesday: Overcast, alpine temperature -8 C, moderate southwest wind, 5-15 cm of snow possible. 

Avalanche Summary

Avalanches are decreasing in likelihood, but it still may be possible to trigger wind slabs in isolated pockets in the alpine. This is a great MIN report from the South Columbia region on Wednesday that helps to paint the picture of these wind slab avalanches.

If you see anything while out in the field, please consider sharing that information with us and the backcountry community via the Mountain Information Network.

Snowpack Summary

Snow line sits around 1200 m, and snow depths range from 70-140 cm at treeline elevations.

A week of cold temperatures has been decreasing the strength of the upper snowpack, except in isolated areas where it has been drifted into wind slabs in the alpine. These slabs could be more reactive where they overly a weak layer of surface hoar (feathery crystals) that formed on a crust. 

A variety of crusts from late October are buried deeper in the snowpack (down 50 to 100 cm). Generally, the prolonged inactive weather pattern has improved snowpack stability in the short term. 

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.