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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 23rd, 2022–Feb 24th, 2022

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

Regions

Banff Yoho Kootenay.

Lots of wind effect out there, but good skiing can still be found in sheltered locations. Bundle up and remember to bring an extra layer in case something goes wrong and you have to wait around in the cold!

Weather Forecast

Generally benign weather over the next few days with cold overnight lows (-20 to -25) and progressively warmer daytime highs (-5 to -10). We might see a cm or two of new snow on Wednesday overnight but otherwise dry. Alpine winds will be light from the north, switching to SW and increasing to strong on Saturday with the next storm system.

Snowpack Summary

Wind effect, wind slabs and scoured surfaces exist in many alpine and tree-line elevations. Sheltered areas have a soft, facetted surface. The Jan 30th surface hoar/sun crust layer is variable in distribution and reactivity, but is generally 40-60 cm down and producing hard to no results in snowpack tests.

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanches observed or reported on Wednesday. Continued observations of the storm slab/ wind slab cycle from last weekend to size 3 from a field trip in the Emerald lake area. One of the larger fracture lines seen was in the alpine on a west aspect on Mt. Field. ~ size 2.5 and likely failing due to windloading on a suncrust.

Confidence

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.