Avalanche Forecast
North Columbia
A Special Public Avalanche Warning is in effect. Copy this link to view details: http://bit.ly/2nSOUyX
Avalanche Problem 1: Wind Slabs
What Elevation?
Which Slopes?
Chances of Avalanches?
Expected Size?
Travel and Terrain Advice
- Give cornices a wide berth when traveling on or below ridges.
- If triggered, wind slabs may step down to deeper layers resulting in large avalanches.
- Travel on ridgetops to avoid wind slabs on slopes below.
Avalanche Problem 2: Persistent Slabs
What Elevation?
Which Slopes?
Chances of Avalanches?
Expected Size?
Several troublesome layers are producing very large, destructive avalanches. These could be triggered by the weight of a person or snowmobile, or a surface avalanche.
Travel and Terrain Advice
- Avoid traveling in runout zones. Avalanches have the potential to run to valley floor.
- Minimize exposure to sun exposed slopes when the solar radiation is strong.
- Choose simple terrain.
Avalanche Problem 3: Storm Slabs
What Elevation?
Which Slopes?
Chances of Avalanches?
Expected Size?
Recent storm snow is gradually stabilizing, but storm slabs can still be triggered by solar warming or cornice fall, or a person in specific areas.
Travel and Terrain Advice
- Use conservative route selection. Choose low angled and supported terrain with low consequence.
- Avoid avalanche terrain during periods of strong sun.
Avalanche Summary
A very large, widespread avalanche cycle was observed on Thursday, with a few events continuing on Friday. Slopes of all aspects and elevations ran full path and reached valley floor. In some cases, mature timber was smashed. These failed on all of the persistent weak layers discussed in the snowpack section. Avalanches involving only the recent storm snow were also very large.
The natural cycle is winding down, but human-triggering remains a real concern. You might be surprised by how large an avalanche can be triggered and how far it could run.
Snowpack Summary
Strong north to north-westerly winds have shifted 25-70 cm recent storm snow into wind slabs on lee slopes. This adds to an existing storm slab up to 1-2.5 m deep from the last couple of weeks accumulation.
Several persistent weak layers make up a troublesome snowpack which is not tolerating the recent load. In the top 1.5-2.5 m of the snowpack, two surface hoar layers buried in January can be found. Expect to find one or other of these on all aspects and elevations.
Deeper in the snowpack (around 200 cm deep) is a facet/crust/surface hoar layer from December, most prevalent at and below treeline.
Near the base of the snowpack is a crust/facet combo, most likely to be triggered from thin spots in the alpine.
All of these layers have produced large avalanches recently. The wide distribution and ongoing reactivity of these layers suggests that avoidance through choosing simple terrain is the best strategy.
Weather Forecast
An Arctic air mass keeps things cold and dry until Tuesday, when moderate snow is expected, with milder temperatures and strong south-westerly winds.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
Avalanche Forecasts in your Inbox
Avalanche Canada has switched to an RSS feed for its daily forecasts. This is a much more flexible method that allows automatic delivery to your email inbox, or to an RSS reader of your choice.
What are RSS feeds?
RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is a popular standardized file format allowing up-to-date delivery of web-based content. RSS feeds enable you to receive content updates from websites, delivered to your email through an RSS aggregator (such as blogtrottr.com) or viewed through applications called RSS readers (such as feedly.com).
Set up an RSS feed for your email:
Select a RSS aggregator
- North Columbia URL:
http://www.avalanche.ca/api/forecasts/north-columbia.rss - Copy the url and paste it into the appropriate field of your RSS aggregator.
- Fill in your email address.
- Voila! Watch the Avalanche Canada forecast roll into your inbox.
Forecast Disclaimer
Avalanche Canada's Public Avalanche Bulletin, and other information and services provided by Avalanche Canada, are intended for personal and recreational purposes only.
**THIS INFORMATION IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND IN NO EVENT SHALL THE PROVIDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DAMAGES RESULTING FROM DISCOMFORT, INJURY, OR DEATH, CLAIMS BY THIRD PARTIES OR FOR OTHER SIMILAR COSTS, OR ANY SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF THE INFORMATION.**
The user acknowledges that it is impossible to accurately predict natural events such as avalanches in every instance, and uses the data in this bulletin with this always foremost in mind. The accuracy or reliability of the data is not guaranteed or warranted in any way and the Providers disclaim liability of any kind whatsoever, including, without limitation, liability for quality, performance, merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose arising out of the use, or inability to use the data.
Recent north winds have left behind wind slabs and cornices on lee slopes.