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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Dec 27th, 2021–Dec 28th, 2021

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

Regions

Banff Yoho Kootenay.

The snow conditions are good but the cold temperatures continue! Being prepared to stay warm will be key to ensuring your personal safety, as even a minor injury or delay can become very serious in these temperatures.

Weather Forecast

The Arctic air mass continues to bring cold temperatures to the region. Day time high temps will be near -25 C at valley bottom with the evening lows dropping below -30 C. A slight inversion may be present above treeline. Cloud cover and some light flurries are expected on Tuesday.

Snowpack Summary

10-40 cm of snow over the last week with wind from various directions have developed small wind slabs at treeline and above. There is 50-70 cm over the Dec 2 crust/facet combo which exists below 2200m...this has not been an active problem yet but we are monitoring it closely. Shallow areas (<100 cm) still have weaker basal facets near the ground.

Avalanche Summary

A couple small size 1 natural slabs avalanches in the alpine were observed on Monday, likely triggered by wind loading or small cornice chunks. Local ski areas were able to ski cut small wind slabs in lee areas at treeline and in the alpine, and trigger similar avalanches with explosive work.

Confidence

Due to the number and quality of field observations

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.