Avalanche Hazard Goes to High on West Coast
Make good decisions when planning your weekend objective as the backcountry north and south of Squamish will be sketchy
Avalanche danger is jumping to “high” in parts of B.C. as temperatures are set to plummet and heavy snowfalls are expected up high. “We are expecting large avalanches in many areas,” said Avalanche Canada forecaster Ari Hanna.
The forecast calls for a “quick burst of heavy snow” to areas on Vancouver Island. “There’ll be more snow sitting on top of these weak layers in more coastal areas, and there will be progressively less and less snow as we go inland,” said Hanna.
Environment Canada has issued a snowfall warning for Whistler noting that up to 25 centimetres of snow could fall in the next 24 hours. “The conditions have completely changed so we’ll need to dial it back and match our terrain selection to the conditions,” said Hanna.
“Remember the avalanche danger. We recommend sticking to simple terrain,” she says. “If you’re exposing your group to avalanche terrain travel, one at a time, make sure all group members are engaged in decision-making… We’ll have to wait and see and be patient.” Check avalanche conditions on avalanche.ca here.
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