SOUTH COAST REGION WEATHER: Spring is obviously arriving. Temperatures have been mild, and anything coming onshore from the Pacific now often produces lower elevation rain. A series of smaller disturbances tracked inland during the week, keeping temperatures mild and giving occasional periods of moisture followed by clear breaks. Winds have been brisk in the alpine. The outlook for the weekend is more of the same, with 3 small systems predicted to come onshore by Monday. SNOWPACK: About 25cm of storm snow has been added to the alpine. Wind transport has created problematic windslab in most locations. A layer of facets sits under the windslab, and the warm weather is beginning to turn that layer to rounds, although it still shows up Thursday as a weakness. AVALANCHES: Natural activity to size 2 is widespread, failing just under the storm snow of facets, at times made worse by a buried surface hoar layer just above. DANGER: ABOVE TREELINE - Considerable BELOW TREELINE - Moderate TRAVEL ADVISORY: Thursday, some improvement in stability was noted, although wind transport continued to place further load on the weak interfaces at treeline and above. More storm snow will continue to be added in the alpine, combined with strong winds. The heat in the airmass will continue to cause rising hazard as the day progresses. NORTH COLUMBIA REGION WEATHER: The temperatures in the region have been well above zero in the daytime all the way to around 1500m, and overnight lows have remained in the plus range up to around 1000m. Alpine winds have been light to moderate out of the SW. The forecast is for a series of 3 weak disturbances to track through by Sunday night, each bringing rising temperatures and winds, as well as snow above 1000m and rain below. SNOWPACK: We have an extremely problematic buried surface hoar instability developing. The upper 100cm now have 3 buried surface hoar layers, and the uppermost, now down about 30 to 45cm, is persisting as a failure plane. This upper layer is somewhat inconsistent, adding to its unpredictability. AVALANCHES: Natural activity had pretty well tapered off by Thursday, although naturals to size 2 were common in observer reports earlier in the week. The upper buried surface hoar layer is still very fragile and releases reliably with human triggers, particularly in the afternoon when daytime heating reduces stability somewhat. Most reports of human triggering are from around 1800 to 2400m. The Revelstoke area seems to have greater potential for instabilities than further north in areas like McBride. DANGER: ABOVE TREELINE - Considerable, areas of High BELOW TREELINE - Considerable, increasing with afternoon heat TRAVEL ADVISORY: We've got a developing problem on our hands. A fragile surface hoar layer buried deep enough to be dangerous is no longer producing natural activity, making it harder to recognize the risk. It is inconsistent, reducing the reliability of snowpack tests for evaluating it. It still reacts regularly to human triggers, confirming it is still dangerous. The weather forecast is calling for more snow and warm temperatures, both of which will contribute to a rising hazard. By Thursday, the Canadian Avalanche Centre was still receiving daily reports of avalanche involvements on this layer. The layer is likely to remain fragile throughout the weekend, and the expected heat and loading may increase its potential to propagate. Sled, shred, and ski with conservative attitudes! SOUTH COLUMBIA REGION WEATHER: Conditions were warm and moist in the South Columbias this week, with periods of rain at lower elevations, turning to snow above 1100m. Winds remained calm through most of the region. Weather forecasters are calling for three weak waves of moisture to track through by Monday, with sunny breaks between. Temperatures will remain mild. SNOWPACK: Storm snow from this week varies widely, from 20 to 60cm depending on location. There is a series of three buried surface hoar layers in the upper metre of the snowpack, and the uppermost is still quite reactive. Along the east side of the region, which is more under the influence of cold air from Alberta, a layer of weaker facet crystals sits just under the storm snow. The deeper snowpack is still strong, although the Y2K surface hoar and the November crust/facet interface are still quite apparent and waiting to come alive later on. AVALANCHES: Natural activity to size two was widespread earlier in the week, and still being observed regularly on Thursday. Human triggering was still being observed continually, often involving partial burials. Kokanee Glacier park reported widespread human triggered slabs about 35cm thick at elevations around 2000m. The vast majority of the activity around the region is on the uppermost buried surface hoar layer, down 30-75cm depending on location. This is at times made worse by a sun crust just under the surface hoar on southerly aspects. DANGER: ABOVE TREELINE - Considerable, areas of High BELOW TREELINE - Considerable with daily warming TRAVEL ADVISORY: The hazard tends to increase as you go north. Most avalanches and involvements have been happening in the afternoons due to daytime heating. More heat and precipitation are on the way if the forecast holds true, so the hazard will persist but may even get worse as we go into the weekend. ROCKIES REGION WEATHER: The Rockies have been pleasantly mild this week, with temperatures just below freezing. Moderate winds have continued to blow out of the west in the alpine. Winds are predicted to drop off early in the weekend, then increase again as skies cloud over and Pacific moisture moves in from the BC interior by Saturday. Weather forecasters expect rain at valley bottom and snow in the alpine by late Saturday, persisting into the next week. SNOWPACK: The moderate temperatures have been just warm enough to promote settlement and improve stability, but not warm enough to drive the upper snowpack toward isothermal conditions. The winds have caused what storm snow that did fall to build a wind slab in lee and cross winded terrain in the alpine. The mid and lower snowpack is still relatively strong by Rockies standards. AVALANCHES: Natural wind slab failures to size 2.5 in the alpine. DANGER: ABOVE TREELINE - Considerable BELOW TREELINE - Moderate, increasing TRAVEL ADVISORY: The warming trend, particularly with the expected rain at lower elevations later on, will have the potential to trigger activity later in the weekend from excessive heating of the surface layers. The expected snow at higher elevations will continue to be added to the wind slab that already exists.