Avalanche forecast

South Rockies

Dec 22 – 23, 2015Avalanche Canada
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Avalanche danger

Thu
Fri
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
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Highlights

Variable storm slab/ wind slab conditions: make observations continually as you travel.

Avalanche problems

  • Storm Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Possible
    Size
    1–4
    Recent snow has formed touchy soft slabs and is also sluffing easily in steep terrain. This new snow may be hiding hard wind slabs on slopes lee to the SW.

Confidence

Moderate - Due to the number of field observations

Weather Forecast

An unsettled NW flow brings light snow and cold temperatures. Tonight: trace; Wednesday: 2-5 cm; Thursday: 2-5 cm; Friday: trace. Winds are generally light. The freezing level stays at the surface. For more details check out https://avalanche.ca/weather.

Avalanche Summary

A few naturally triggered size 1-2.5 storm slabs have been observed over the last two days. Numerous loose dry avalanches were also reported.

Snowpack Summary

The series of recent storms has left us with around 50-80 cm new snow. Strong to extreme SW winds in specific areas in the south of the region on Sunday created wind slabs at all elevations. These may now be buried by subsequent snowfall, making them hard to spot. Cornices exist on many ridge crests. Recent storm snow overlies a hard rain crust. This strong, thick crust seems to be effectively isolating the lower snowpack.

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