Dogtooth Avalanches & Surface Hoar

Quick report

willwoodsguiding · Dec 31, 2025 · Dogtooth

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Quick report

Weather
cloudy, sunny, warm
Ride Type
alpineSlopes, openTrees, steepSlopes
Stayed Away
sunnySlopes
Riding Quality
good
Snow Conditions
powder, windAffected
Avalanche Conditions
avalancheConditionSlab, avalancheConditionTemp

Out for a walk in the backcountry north of Kicking Horse today, lots of people out enjoying the snow. Saw a large slab (sz2.5 out of steep, rocky terrain (see 'Avalanche' tab) that I suspect was a solar trigger today, and several thinner windslabs out of steep terrain. The clouds kept the snow surface cool until about 2pm when things got hot up high. Also worth noting was new surface hoar growing on everything between ~1900m and 2300m in the Rudis and Molars areas.

Avalanche

Run Length
250
Slab Width
75
Trigger Type
natural
Avalanche Size
2.5
Slab Thickness
80
Start Zone Aspect
SW
Start Zone Incline
40
Avalanche Character
persistentSlab
Number Of Avalanches
2-5
Avalanche Observation
12hrsAgo
Start Zone Elevation Band
alp
Avalanche Occurrence Datetime
2025-12-31T17:00:00.000Z

looked like it could have been a solar trigger from steep, thin, rocky start zone. Ran full path and also took out slabs in the sidewalls of the track.