Vancouver Island Avalanche Bulletin

Vancouver Island Avalanche Bulletin

Date Issued: Monday 30 November, 2009

Valid Until: Thursday 03 December, 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:

Fair - Field information remains limited.

Weather:

Precipitation over the last four days has varied greatly on Vancouver Island with more than 100mm falling on the west coast, about 50mm in the middle of the island alps and as little as 5mm on the east coast. Freezing levels moved up and down by a few hundred metres around tree line meaning that most of this precipitation fell as snow in the alpine. Winds while light earlier in this period became strong later in the period first from the SE through SW (depending on location) then from the NW. The outlook is for cool dry conditions on Tuesday, some more cloud and a rise in freezing levels to perhaps 1500m on Wednesday and the onset of some precipitation on Thursday with freezing levels around 1000m. Precipitation will again be stronger on the west coast. Winds will be light.

Travel advisory:

New snow and strong winds from all directions will have left wind slab on all aspects in the alpine. These should be quite easy to trigger as avalanches. With the colder temperatures locking up the snow below tree line things will be solid there. The transition just above tree line will be where snow has fallen rather than rain and that snow has been moved by wind.

Snowpack:

Information about the snow pack especially in the alpine is limited.

Outlook:

Cool dry conditions on Tuesday, some more cloud and a rise in freezing levels to perhaps 1500m on Wednesday and the onset of some precipitation on Thursday with freezing levels around 1000m. Precipitation will again be stronger on the west coast. Winds will be light.

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.