Buckle up ladies and gentlemen! The spring avalanche cycle has arrived!
Occasional cornice falls are expected, increasing into the weekend. some of these may trigger large slab avalanches, running well down into lower elevations.
Weak mid-pack facets and upper-snowpack are reactive, especially on shaded, wind-sheltered slopes. This is a Wet Slab problem on solar aspects, as water accumulates above strong crusts.
Summer like temps have created an avalanche cycle. With no overnight freezes and more sunny days forecasted this problem will continue for the next while.
Warm with no overnight freezes.
Friday: Sunny with cloudy periods. Alpine temps around 9. Light north winds. Freezing levels 2900m.
Saturday: Sunny with cloudy periods. Alpine temps: Low 5, High 13. Light west winds. Freezing levels 3600m.
Sunday: A change in weather with high freezing levels (2800m or so) and rain starting in the afternoon (5mm)
Snowpack is becoming isothermal into the alpine on shady aspects. The snowpack has transitioned rapidly from Winter to a summer like snowpack. Little to no overnight freezes are expected.
The past 3 days there has been an avalanche cycle with the warming trend. Numerous loose wet avalanches up to size 2 have been observed in the alpine and treeline. Near Jasper in shallow snowpack areas townsite several large (size 3) slab avalanches have been observed on North to Easterly aspects in the alpine and running into valley bottoms.
