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

Mar 3rd, 2025–Mar 4th, 2025

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

Regions

Kootenay Boundary, Bonnington, Grohman, Kootenay Pass, Norns, Rossland, Ymir, Crawford.

Seeking dry snow after the warmup may lead you into terrain with lingering persistent slab hazards.

Remain cautious on high northerly slopes & areas without a supportive surface crust.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

Sun: Numerous naturally triggered size 1-2 wet loose avalanches occurred across the region.

Sat: A natural size 3 persistent slab was seen on Evening Ridge (photo below). Several wet loose and wet slabs also occurred in the region.

Fri: Explosives control produced a size 3 persistent slab on a northwest-facing feature at 2100 m

Looking forward: With cooler temperatures forecast, persistent layers should be less likley to trigger and wet avalanches will be unlikely.

Snowpack Summary

A melt-freeze crust or moist snow cap the snowpack on all but high elevation northerly slopes, where you may still find dry but wind-affected snow. Two concerning weak layers are present in the mid snowpack: facets/surface hoar or a thin crust from mid-February buried 40-60 cm, and faceted snow/surface hoar/crust from late January buried 60-90 cm. These layers were active during the warmup, but should become less triggerable as the snowpack cools and surface crusts strengthen. They remain most concerning at upper elevations where a strong surface crust is absent.

Weather Summary

Monday Night

Mostly clear. 15 to 30 km/h variable ridgetop wind. Freezing level 1700 m, then falling to valley bottom. Treeline temperature low of -6 °C.

Tuesday

Mostly cloudy. 15 to 20 km/h south ridgetop wind. Freezing level rising to 1500 m. Treeline temperature around -3 °C.

Wednesday

Cloudy with 5 to 15 cm of new snow overnight. 10 to 20 km/h west ridgetop wind. Freezing level rising to 1500 m. Treeline temperatures around -5 °C.

Thursday

Sunny. 20 to 30 km/h north ridgetop wind. Freezing level rising to 1800 m. Treeline temperature around 0 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Be aware of the potential for large, destructive avalanches due to deeply buried weak layers.
  • Avalanche activity is unlikely when a thick melt-freeze crust is present on the snow surface.
  • Keep in mind that human triggering may persist as natural avalanches taper off.

Problems

Persistent Slabs

Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.