Avalanche forecast

Sea To Sky

Feb 5, 2017Avalanche Canada
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Archived · expired 10 years ago

Avalanche danger

Sun
Mon
Alpine
4 · High
Treeline
3 · Considerable
Below
3 · Considerable
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Highlights

Touchy storm slabs reactive to human triggers. Conservative decision making will be CRITICAL to playing safe in the mountains this weekend.

Avalanche problems

  • Storm Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Very Likely
    Size
    1–3
    Touchy storm slabs reactive to human triggers. Don't forget about what's above your head. Natural avalanches starting in the alpine may run long distances.

Confidence

Moderate - Forecast snowfall amounts are uncertain

Weather Forecast

Saturday night: 15-20 cm new snow/ Strong, southwest winds/ Freezing level 250m.Sunday: 5-10 cm new snow/ Moderate, southwest winds/ Freezing level 250m.Monday: 0-5 cm new snow/ Light southwest winds/ Freezing level sea level.Tuesday: Mostly cloudy with flurries/ Light, southwest winds/ Freezing level sea level.

Avalanche Summary

On Saturday, numerous skier triggered avalanches up to size to 2 were reported near Whistler. Human triggered avalanches are expected to remain very likely throughout the weekend.

Snowpack Summary

30-40 cm of new snow has buried a wide variety of old snow surfaces including stiff wind slab or wind effected snow at upper elevations, sun crust on steep southerly slopes, surface hoar and surface facets in sheltered locations. An additional 15-20 cm is expected by Sunday morning, bringing storm totals to 40-60 cm. The mid-January interface (facets) is buried approximately 60-100 cm down and recent snowpack tests have shown hard, yet sudden planar results. The mid and lower snowpack is generally well settled (strong). However, there remain a number of facet and crust layers that are currently dormant but will require monitoring with additional loading.

Regions covered