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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 14th, 2021–Feb 15th, 2021

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

Regions

Little Yoho.

Despite the cold temperatures avalanches continue to occur daily. As temperatures slowly increase there is some potential for the frequency of this activity to increase as well.

Weather Forecast

Winds have returned to the SW and have backed off to generally light where they should remain Monday. Alpine temps reached -20C today but are expected to peak at -15C Monday while valley bottom temps may break -10C with clear skies to start the day. Increasing cloud late Monday may lead to trace amounts of snow overnight and cooling in the alpine.

Snowpack Summary

Variable winds have created small slabs in the alpine, and wind effect in open areas at treeline. The surface snow is faceting and beginning to sluff more easily in steep terrain. A facet layer from Jan 27th down 30-40 cm is of note especially near treeline. On steep south slopes this layer may also involve a thin crust.

Avalanche Summary

Increased winds saw some loose dry activity in steep alpine terrain on Mt. Stephen Saturday. Cornice failures have been observed over the past few days, which have pulled small wind slabs below. A size 2 to 2.5 natural on Mt. Carnarvon was reported to have occurred over the last 48 -72 hours.

Confidence

Due to the number 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.

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.