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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Apr 5th, 2022–Apr 6th, 2022

Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Below Threshold.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Below Threshold.
Alpine
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.
Below Treeline
Below Threshold.

Regions

Yukon.

Recent snow and strong southerly winds continue to form fresh wind slabs on lee features which may be reactive to human triggers.

Avoid steep or convex slopes where the wind has made the snow stiff or "slabby".

Confidence

Moderate - Uncertainty is due to the limited number of field observations.

Weather Forecast

Tuesday night: Partly cloudy with isolated flurries; 3-10 cm / Moderate southwest winds / Low of -9.

Wednesday: Mix of sun and cloud with isolated flurries; 0-3 cm / Light southwest wind / High of -2.

Thursday: Mix of sun and cloud with isolated flurries; 3-10 cm / Moderate south wind / High of -2.

Friday: Mix of sun and cloud / Light west wind / High of -4.

Avalanche Summary

A couple naturally triggered size 2 wet slab avalanches were observed on steep, solar aspects on Monday. 

A small (size 1) skier triggered wind slab avalanche was also reported on a steep slope in the alpine.

Snowpack Summary

20-30 cm of recent snow sits on a hard surface of either wind-pressed old snow or sun crusts on solar aspects.

Strong southerly winds continue to form fresh wind slabs on lee features which may be reactive to human triggers.

A strong mid-pack sits on top of weak facets near the ground.

Cornices are very large and exposure to them should be minimized, especially during warm or windy weather.

Terrain and Travel

  • Avoid freshly wind loaded terrain features.
  • Wind slabs may be poorly bonded to the underlying crust.
  • Back off slopes as the surface becomes moist or wet with rising temperatures.
  • Cornices become weak with daytime heating or solar exposure.
  • Minimize your exposure time below cornices.

Problems

Wind Slabs

Wind Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) formed by the wind. Wind typically transports snow from the upwind sides of terrain features and deposits snow on the downwind side. Wind slabs are often smooth and rounded and sometimes sound hollow, and can range from soft to hard. Wind slabs that form over a persistent weak layer (surface hoar, depth hoar, or near-surface facets) may be termed Persistent Slabs or may develop into Persistent Slabs.

Loose Wet

Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.