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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 5th, 2023–Dec 6th, 2023

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

South Coast Inland, Birkenhead, Duffey, South Chilcotin, Stein, Taseko.

A thick crust on the surface will provide stable avalanche conditions in most areas. Assess for cohesive storm and wind slabs at higher elevations where the crust may be buried or not exist.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

No avalanches have been reported in the region yet this season. We expect a natural avalanche cycle occurred during peak warming Monday night.

If you're heading out in the backcountry, please consider sharing any observations on the Mountain Information Network

Snowpack Summary

At lower elevations, below roughly 1800 m, a widespread thick crust continues to form in the aftermath of Monday's warm, wet weather. This crust should provide a bridge over any previous layers of concern deeper in the snowpack.

In the alpine areas that did not receive significant rain, approximately 20 to 40 cm of dense, heavy snow sits over various layers of crusts, faceted snow, and isolated pockets of surface hoar in sheltered areas.

Weather Summary

Tuesday Night

Cloudy with trace amounts of snow, southwest alpine winds 20 to 40 km/h, treeline temperature -2 °C, freezing level 1500 m and dropping.

Wednesday

Mix of sun and cloud with no precipitation, west alpine winds 10 to 20 km/h, treeline temperature -4 °C.

Thursday

Mix of sun and cloud with no precipitation, south alpine winds 10 to 20 km/h, treeline temperature -7 °C.

Friday

Mostly sunny with precipitation overnight, northwest alpine winds 10 to 30 km/h, treeline temperature -8 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • When a thick, melt-freeze surface crust is present, avalanche activity is unlikely.
  • Snow is accumulating at higher elevations despite lower elevations being almost snow free
  • Early season avalanches at any elevation have the potential to be particularly dangerous due to obstacles that are exposed or just below the surface.

Problems

Storm Slabs

Storm Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer (a slab) of new snow that breaks within new snow or on the old snow surface. Storm-slabs typically last between a few hours and few days (following snowfall). Storm-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.