Avalanche Forecast
Issued: Feb 6th, 2021 4:00PM
The alpine rating is , the treeline rating is , and the below treeline rating is Known problems include Wind Slabs and Loose Dry.
Stephen Holeczi,
Cold temperatures are here for the week. Factor this in when packing extra layers in case something goes wrong. Wind slabs are the main concern, but with few alpine observations, we are uncertain as to how prevalent they are.
Summary
Weather Forecast
Arctic air has moved into the region. Cloudy conditions on Sunday with trace amounts of snow and decreased wind speeds. Winds will be variable from NE to SW on Sunday. Expect -20 to -30C temperatures for most of the week.
Snowpack Summary
Previous winds have redistributed the recent 30-60cm of low density storm snow into wind slab in the alpine and exposed areas at tree line. In sheltered areas the recent storm snow remains loose powder. Buried sun crust and facets on steep south aspects. Treeline snow depths range from 150-220cm.
Avalanche Summary
Natural avalanche activity has tapered since the peak of the storm on Tuesday. Explosive control work Friday on Mt. Simpson produced avalanches to size 2.5 in areas where there were newly formed wind slabs.
Confidence
Due to the number and quality of field observations
Problems
Wind Slabs
Wind slabs recently formed from variable winds are still a concern, but there have been limited alpine observations over the last 48 hours. We expect the incoming cold to decrease the sensitivity of these slabs over the next few days.
- Watch for shooting cracks or stiffer feeling snow. Avoid areas that appear wind loaded.
- Use caution in lee areas. Recent wind loading has created wind slabs.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Loose Dry
There is a lot of new snow hanging around, and in very steep couloirs and climbing gullies sloughing is still possible. We expect this problem to decrease in the short term with the incoming cold spell.
- Be careful of loose dry power sluffing in steep terrain.
- Be aware of party members below you that may be exposed to your sluffs.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: All elevations.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Valid until: Feb 7th, 2021 4:00PM
