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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 8th, 2025–Mar 9th, 2025

Alpine
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Alpine
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Regions

Banff Yoho Kootenay, Little Yoho, Banff, East Side 93N, Kootenay, Lake Louise, LLSA, Sunshine, West Side 93N, Field.

Precipitation amounts will be determined by the track of the incoming storm. Local intense snowfall is possible.

While limited snowfall is expected overnight, rapid loading could occur Sunday.

The persistent slabs have remained sensitive to triggering since the last storm. Natural activity on these layers is likely to occur.

Confidence

No Rating

Avalanche Summary

Avalanche control along the Sunshine road Friday produced persistent slab avalanches to size 2.5 on mainly south-facing targets.

Thursday , a skier-triggered a size 2.5 slab on the persistent facet layers at Quartz Hill in the Sunshine Backcountry. This slab averaged 50cm deep but was as thick as 90cm.

Saturday, skiers north of Dolomite Peak triggered a persistent slab that buried one skier.... more to come...

Snowpack Summary

On shaded aspects, 10-15cm of snow has accumulated through the week while several superficial crusts are found on solar aspects.

Persistent weak layers of mainly facets (Feb. 22nd / Jan. 30th) are buried 20 / 50cm deep with a faceted mid-pack buried beneath.

In thin areas to the east, basal facets linger at the base of the snowpack while deeper snowpack areas out west are significantly stronger.

Treeline snow depths range from ~75 cm in the east to over 150 cm in the west.

Weather Summary

An atmospheric river sits over BC. Wherever the "nozzle" of this hose ends up pointing, will receive intense precipitation through Monday morning. SW winds will remain in the strong range while freezing levels approach 2000m.

Models favor the nozzle pointing north of the region Saturday evening to deliver only 5-15cm to BYK by Sunday AM before drooping south to bring another 15 - 35cm through Monday AM.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Avoid avalanche terrain during periods of heavy snowfall.
  • Avalanche danger is expected to to increase throughout the day, think carefully about your exit plan from the backcountry.
  • Loose avalanches may step down to deeper layers, resulting in larger avalanches.

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.

Loose Dry

Loose Dry avalanches are the release of dry unconsolidated snow and typically occur within layers of soft snow near the surface of the snowpack. These avalanches start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-dry avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs.

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.