Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 30th, 2024–Mar 31st, 2024

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, human triggered possible.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Alpine

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Treeline

Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.

Below Treeline

Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Regions

Jasper, Brazeau, Churchill, Cirrus-Wilson, Fryatt, Icefields, Maligne, Marmot, Miette Lake, Pyramid.

Good skiing can be found out there, however watch for windslabs near ridgetop and persistent slabs on northerly aspect.

If the sun comes out and it warms up, wet loose avalanches will be possible during the heat of the day.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanche activity reported on Saturday.

Snowpack Summary

10-15cm of low density snow sits over the March 19th crust which is present everywhere except North aspects above 1900m. The Feb 3rd crust interface is down 30-90cm. Basal depth hoar and facets make up the bottom of the snowpack. HS ranges from 50 to 150cm.

Weather Summary

Mountain Weather Forecast is available @ Avalanche Canada https://avalanche.ca/weather/forecast

Sunday

A mix of sun & cloud. Ridge wind west: 10-20 km/h. Freezing level: 1700m.

Monday

Cloudy with sunny periods and isolated flurries. Ridge wind west: 15-25 km/h. Freezing level: 2200m.

Tuesday

Mainly cloudy with isolated flurries. Ridge wind southwest: 20 km/h gusting to 65 km/h. Freezing level: 2700m.

Terrain and Travel Advice

Conditions may have improved, but be mindful that deep instabilities are still present.
If triggered, wind slabs avalanches may step down to deeper layers resulting in larger avalanches.
Be carefull around freshly wind loaded features.

Problems

Persistent Slabs

Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.

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.