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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 11th, 2025–Jan 12th, 2025

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

Regions

North Columbia, South Columbia, Blue River, Clearwater, Premier, Clemina, Esplanade, Jordan, North Monashee, North Selkirk, Central Selkirk, Gold, Valhalla, Whatshan.

Start on small slopes and watch for signs of instability like shooting cracks or recent avalanches.

Verify conditions in your area, recent snowfall has varied across the region.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

On Friday, numerous small to large (up to size 2.5) human and naturally triggered avalanches were reported in the recent storm snow. Most of them occurred around treeline, and in some cases, an early January weak layer was mentioned as a possible factor.

Recently, there were reports of glide cracks opening up and glide slab avalanches up to size 2. Notably more than usual. This problem may exist only in these isolated features, but we'll see if a pattern emerges.

Snowpack Summary

Saturday's moderate northwest winds may have formed wind slabs on lee slopes at treeline and above.

In sheltered terrain, 50 to 40 cm of settling snow sits on a layer of weak, feathery crystals up to 10 mm in size (surface hoar), possibly even into the alpine. In some places this layer may include a crust due to solar effect or very high humidity.

A crust/facet/surface hoar layer (buried in early December) may be found 90 to 160 cm deep. It was previously most active south of Highway 5, but it no longer seems to be an avalanche problem for this forecast area.

Weather Summary

Saturday Night

Cloudy with light flurries. 20 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C.

Sunday

Cloudy with 0 to 2 cm of snow. 15 to 25 km/h north ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C.

Monday

Mostly sunny. 20 to 40 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Possible temperature inversion above 2000 m. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

Tuesday

Partly cloudy with light flurries. 20 to 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Possible temperature inversion above 1500 m. Treeline temperature -3 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Be alert to conditions that change with elevation, aspect, and exposure to wind.
  • Avoid areas where the snow feels stiff and/or slabby.
  • Be aware of the potential for remote triggering and large avalanches due to buried surface hoar.
  • Be aware of the potential for loose avalanches in steep terrain where snow hasn't formed a slab.

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.

Loose Dry

Loose Dry avalanches are the release of dry unconsolidated snow and typically occur within layers of soft snow near the surface of the snowpack. These avalanches start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-dry avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs.