Avalanche Forecast
Issued: Apr 23rd, 2019 3:57PM
The alpine rating is , the treeline rating is , and the below treeline rating is Known problems include Loose Wet.
cgarritty,
Avalanche Canada
Warm overnight temperatures and sun in the forecast should allow for a quick ramp up to heightened loose wet avalanche conditions on Tuesday. Check out our 'All Melt No Freeze' spring scenario for advice on managing these conditions.
Summary
Confidence
Low - Due to the number of field observations
Weather Forecast
Tuesday night: Cloudy with clear periods and a chance of isolated flurries bringing a trace to 5 cm of new snow. Light west winds. Freezing levels dropping from 2500 to 2000 metres.
Wednesday: Mainly sunny with cloud decreasing over the day. Light west winds. Alpine high temperatures around +1 with freezing levels to 2500 metres, dropping to 1600 metres overnight.
Thursday: Mainly sunny. Light southwest winds. Alpine high temperatures around +3 with freezing levels to 2500 metres, dropping to 2000 metres overnight.
Friday: Increasingly cloudy with flurries beginning early in the day and continuing overnight. Up to 5 cm of new snow accumulating by end of day. Light southwest winds. Alpine high temperatures around -5 with freezing levels dropping to 1700 metres during the day and 1400 metres overnight.
Avalanche Summary
No new avalanches have been reported in the region. After several consecutive nights of weak overnight cooling, we can expect loose wet avalanche activity to increase rapidly during any periods of strong sunshine.
Please submit your observations to the Mountain Information Network.
Snowpack Summary
In most places rain from Saturday has likely made the surface snow moist or wet except for the highest elevation alpine. If there has been a good overnight freeze, there may be a supportive crust on the surface. The mid and lower snowpack pack are likely a mixture of moist snow and crusts. Below treeline the snowpack has melted or is isothermal.
Problems
Loose Wet
With clear skies and a high freezing level forecast for Wednesday, expect loose wet avalanches to run in steep terrain facing the sun. Surface crusts are likely to break down quickly with overnight temperatures near or above freezing.
- Minimize exposure to steep, sun exposed slopes when the solar radiation is strong.
- A moist/wet snow surface, pinwheeling, and natural avalanches all indicate increased instability.
Aspects: East, South East, South, South West, West.
Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Valid until: Apr 24th, 2019 2:00PM
