Sea To Sky

Assess terrain carefully and practice good group management

The best riding may be on the same features where triggering an avalanche is most likely

A few small wind slab avalanches were triggered on Tuesday and Wednesday with explosives and ski cutting. No other avalanches have been reported in the past 4 days.

However, last week a flurry of very large persistent slab avalanche activity was reported at alpine and treeline elevations. These avalanches are becoming less likely, but the consequences of triggering one remain high.

A new crust likely exists on the surface except on high north facing terrain, where 10 to 15 cm of snow overlies a crust from earlier in March.

A layer of facets and surface hoar from mid February can be found down 30 to 60 cm.

Another layer of facets and surface hoar from late January can be found down 80 to 120 cm.

The lower snowpack contain several crusts that are not concerning.

Thursday Night

Increasing cloud. 15 to 30 km/h west ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -5 °C.

Friday

Mostly cloudy. 30 to 60 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C.

Saturday

Cloudy with 20 to 40 cm of snow. 50 to 70 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -1 °C.

Sunday

Cloudy with 40 to 60 cm of snow. 40 to 70 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -2 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

• Be careful as you transition into wind-affected terrain.
• Use ridges or ribs to avoid areas of wind-loaded snow.
• Avoid shallow, rocky areas where the snowpack transitions from thick to thin.
• Avalanche activity is unlikely when a thick melt-freeze crust is present on the snow surface.