Vancouver Island Avalanche Bulletin

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Date Issued: Tuesday, April 21. 2009

Valid Until: Thursday, April 23. 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

OUTLOOK	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday
Alpine	High	Moderate Considerable on solar aspects in PM	Moderate High on solar aspects in PM
Treeline	High	Moderate Considerable on solar aspects in PM	Moderate High on solar aspects In PM
Below Treeline	Below threshold	Below threshold	Below threshold

Confidence:

Good - Due to a stable weather pattern over the next few days

Primary concerns:

Wet snow avalanches on all aspects into the Alpine on Tuesday due to high Freezing levels.

Weather:

No new precipitation of note is expected for the next few days. Freezing level are expected to hit the 3000m mark on Tuesday though then lowering back down to around 1000m for the rest of the forecast period.

Travel advisory:

Watch the big slopes above you and be aware that this is the time of year that the snowpack can release down to ground resulting in large avalanches that can travel far. EXTREME CAUTION IS ADVISED on the solar aspects after Tuesday for isothermal conditions.

Watch out for areas that have snow overlying the smooth rock slabs that are so abundant on the island as it takes little melting to bring the entire snow pack down off of them. Areas with glide cracks in the snow where rock showing through should be avoided at all costs.

Snowpack:

With freezing levels up to 3000+ expected for Tuesday and alpine temps up to 7 degrees observed on Monday expect conditions to be isothermal and in a very weak state. As the freezing levels drop on Wednesday and Thursday the alpine snow should gain some strength back. With these freezing levels dropping to around 1000m Treeline areas should be treated with caution as these areas might not recover. Isothermal conditions have been observed over the last 3 days in the treeline and alpine areas with a natural avalanche cycle occurring on Sunday afternoon due to heavy rain and warm temps in the alpine.

Solar aspects will see a lot of sun on Wednesday and Thursday this sun will melt and weaken the snowpack and natural avalanches are certain.

Avalanche Activity:

natural avalanche cycle observed on Sunday due to high freezing levels and rain, all aspects at alpine and treeline elevations.

Outlook:

Sunny weather and lower freezing levels for the long range.

cu.

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.

April 20th, 2009 | Category: Current Condition | Print This Post | Subscribe to comments | Both comments and pings are currently closed