Vancouver Island Avalanche Bulletin

Vancouver Island Avalanche Bulletin

Date Issued: Friday, Feb 13, 2009

Valid Until: Sunday Feb 15, 2009

Bulletin Area: This bulletin covers the mountainous region of Vancouver Island from the Mt. Cain Ski Area in the North to the Beaufort range to the South including the mountains of Strathcona Provincial Park.

DANGER RATINGS

Confidence:

Good: Weather models showing good confidence on the lack of precip and low freezing levels.

Primary Concerns:

Isolated wind slabs overlying a variety of hard surfaces.

Weather:

Low freezing levels and mostly clear skies will prevail for the next few days.  Warm temps on sunny aspects are expected. Winds are forecasted to be light.

Snowpack:

Warm temps will help our 30-40 cms of new snow continue to settle out and gain strength. Areas lee to the wind should be treated with caution where deep wind slabs lurk over potentially hard surfaces. Warm temps will warm up the southerly facing slopes creating instabilities within the new snow surfaces.

Travel advisory:

Vigilance is advised in the lee loaded areas at treeline and in the alpine.  Although Isolated, 30-40 cms of transported snow translates into potentially much thicker wind slab in lee areas. Be cautious on southerly aspects on the warm sunny days.  Although the freezing levels are low direct south facing terrain, especially if steep, will warm up quickly. This daytime heating can trigger avalanches on the sunny aspects.

Avalanche Activity:

No new avalanches have been observed.

Outlook:

Sunny with low freezing levels.

Are you traveling in the island back country?

Send our forecasters your observations. We are particularly interested in hearing if you have observed avalanche activity or If you or a member of your party has been involved in an avalanche. Email your observations to the Island Avalanche Bulletin forecasters at info@islandalpineguides.com

Important Notice: This is a regional forecast and significant variation may exist within the forecast area. The information and danger ratings are intended as a trip planning aid for recreational, backcountry users of avalanche terrain; they are not meant to be used as the sole factor in determining the avalanche danger presented by a specific slope. Always include local weather, snowpack and avalanche observations in your decision to travel in avalanche terrain. Observations and experience may lead to different conclusions from what is reported or recommended. See disclaimer for further details. The technical data used to produce these bulletins is obtained from a variety of sources, including local ski areas and remote weather resources.