Dashboard Regions Weather Stations Radar Alerts Glossary
Contact About
Log In

Register for an account and never miss a forecast again!

Register

Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 15th, 2021–Jan 16th, 2021

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

Regions

South Coast.

Crusty surfaces make for low avalanche danger but tough travel conditions.

Confidence

Moderate - Uncertainty is due to the limited number of field observations.

Weather Forecast

Friday night: Partly cloudy, light northwest ridgetop wind, freezing level 900 m. 

Saturday: Mix of sun and cloud, light westerly ridgetop wind, freezing level 1500 m.

Sunday: Snow overnight, 10-20 cm, moderate to strong northwest ridgetop wind, freezing level 1000 m.

Monday: Mix of sun and cloud, moderate northerly ridgetop wind, freezing level 700 m.

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanches reported on Friday. Glide cracks were observed to be opening up during the wet storm earlier in the week.

Snowpack Summary

A thick block of icy rain crust may be bridging a weaker layer of dry, sugary faceted snow. Affecting this weak snow through the thick crust would be difficult and avalanches on it is unlikely but not impossible in unsupported terrain. Below, the snowpack is a multi tiered sandwich of crusts and moist snow and is well consolidated.

Watch North Shore Rescue's weekly snowpack conditions update here.

Terrain and Travel

  • When a thick, melt-freeze surface crust is present, avalanche activity is unlikely.
  • A crust on the surface will help bind the snow together, but may make for tough travel conditions.

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.