Those looking to get out to the mountains on their snowmobiles this Family Day long weekend should be cautious because recent windy conditions has caused a lot of wind slab, which creates a higher chance of triggering an avalanche.
Bob Sayer, operations manager with Mike Wiegele Helicopter Skiing, added this time of year is especially dangerous, noting avalanches are the main concern for snowmobilers during this portion of the winter months.
“This weekend in particular, and last weekend even more so, there’s been a lot of wind in the mountains; there’s a lot of wind slab and wind slab creates a really dangerous condition for avalanches,” Sayer said.
“If the snow is hard because of the wind, it gets built it into a big, thick hard slab that’ll create a very large avalanche, rather than if it’s just been snowing, you’ll get smaller avalanches—right now, they’re (wind slabs) everywhere above treeline.”
Sayer noted snowmobilers should avoid riding above the treeline at every opportunity, saying if the area is above the treeline and it’s steep, an avalanche will likely be triggered.
An Avalanche Canada special warning was recently made a post cautioning backcountry recreation enthusiasts that weak lower levels of snowpack had increased the chances for an avalanche along several eastern B.C. mountain ranges.
❗️There's a special public avalanche warning in place for BC's interior mountain ranges. A weak layer exists at and below treeline in some interior regions which has the potential to catch people off guard.
— Avalanche Canada (@avalancheca) February 7, 2019
Read the full warning for more info 👉https://t.co/3YQD7BvakR pic.x.com/M6qyuVI40F
