Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 24th, 2024–Jan 25th, 2024

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

Kananaskis, Bow Valley, Highwood Pass, North 40, Spray - KLakes.

The wind slab is sitting overtop of facets. Use caution in avalanche terrain and expect human triggered avalanches

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

Nothing new has been reported or observed. The forecaster were in the Dogleg area (between Hero's Knob and Black Prince).

Snowpack Summary

The top 30cm of the snowpack is either made up of settled snow or wind slab and is overlying 5-15cm of facets. These wind slabs were found at treeline and above and produced some cracking when travelling uphill. The December 5th crust can be found in the lower third of the snowpack and is starting to break down and could wake up and produce larger avalanches, especially triggered from thinner areas. It was very noticeable how variable the alpine is in terms of snow height, anywhere from bare rock to 100cm of snow. The warmer weather over the last few days and in the near future is helping the snowpack but this is a slow process.

Weather Summary

Warm weather continues but the alpine will remain cool. For Thursday, expect clouds, sun and some isolated flurries with a high of -6c. Ridge winds are forecast from the West at 40km/h with a freezing level of 1400m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Back off if you encounter whumpfing, hollow sounds, or shooting cracks.
Be carefull around freshly wind loaded features.
In areas where deep persistent slabs may exist, avoid shallow or variable depth snowpacks and unsupported terrain features.

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.

Deep Persistent Slabs

Deep Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a thick cohesive layer of hard snow (a slab), when the bond breaks between the slab and an underlying persistent weak layer deep in the snowpack. The most common persistent weak layers involved in deep, persistent slabs are depth hoar or facets surrounding a deeply buried crust. Deep Persistent Slabs are typically hard to trigger, are very destructive and dangerous due to the large mass of snow involved, and can persist for months once developed. They are often triggered from areas where the snow is shallow and weak, and are particularly difficult to forecast for and manage.