Avalanche Forecast
Issued: Jan 27th, 2021 4:00PM
The alpine rating is , the treeline rating is , and the below treeline rating is Known problems include Wind Slabs.
ldreier,
Avalanche Canada
Where winds reach more than 20 km/h and impact loose snow, fresh wind slabs are likely to form in alpine lee terrain features.
Summary
Confidence
Moderate - Uncertainty is due to the speed, direction, or duration of the wind and its effect on the snowpack.
Weather Forecast
WEDNESDAY NIGHT: Mainly cloudy with scattered flurries, trace to 5 cm new snow, moderate southerly winds at treeline and strong in the alpine, treeline temperatures around -10 C.
THURSDAY: A mix of sun and clouds, moderate southerly wind with strong gusts, treeline temperatures around -5 C.
FRIDAY: A mix of sun and clouds with scattered flurries, trace of new snow, light westerly wind, treeline temperatures around -6 C.
SATURDAY: A mix of sun and clouds with scattered flurries, trace of new snow, moderate southwest wind, treeline temperatures around -10 C.
Avalanche Summary
No recent avalanches have been reported aside from loose dry avalanches (sluffs) from steep alpine and treeline terrain from the neighboring Lizard Range forecasting area. Cornices are growing fragile with continued cold conditions faceting their bonds.Â
Snowpack Summary
A few centimeters of recent snow has buried surface hoar and old surfaces. A sun crust can be found on steep solar aspects. Alpine and upper treeline terrain remains heavily wind affected from last week's strong to extreme southwest winds with scouring, sastrugi, isolated pockets of soft snow and layers of hard wind slab. A hard thick crust is found up to 1900 m. Near-surface faceting continues to slowly soften hard surfaces, promote facet growth at crust interfaces and weaken cornices.Â
A solid mid-pack sits above deeply buried decomposing crust and facet layers near the bottom of the snowpack (100-150 cm deep). Avalanche activity on these layers has been sporadic and mostly triggered by large loads such as wind slab avalanches and cornice falls. Though unreactive under the current conditions, steep rocky slopes and shallow snowpacks should still be carefully assessed and approached with caution.
Terrain and Travel
- Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind affected terrain.
- Small avalanches can have serious consequences in extreme terrain. Carefully evaluate your line for wind slab hazard before you commit to it.
- Pay attention to cornices and give them a wide berth when traveling on or below ridges.
Problems
Wind Slabs
Wind from the south/southwest continues at moderate levels at treeline and strong levels in the alpine Wednesday night and Thursday throughout the day with a few cm's of new snow. Where winds reach upward of 20 km/h and impact loose snow, fresh wind slabs are likely to form around ridge crests or in lee alpine terrain.
Cornices might grow larger and more fragile with wind and cold temperatures.
Aspects: North, North East, East, South East, West, North West.
Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Valid until: Jan 28th, 2021 4:00PM
