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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 13th, 2017–Jan 14th, 2017

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.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely.

Regions

Lizard-Flathead.

Wind effect is the critical factor. The safest, best riding may be in lower elevation terrain sheltered from the wind.

Confidence

Moderate - Wind effect is extremely variable

Weather Forecast

The dominating arctic airmass will linger through the weekend with continued cold temperatures at valley bottom and a strong alpine inversion, mostly cloudy skies with some sunny periods. Saturday/ Sunday/ Monday: Mix of sun and cloud with an alpine high near -8. Ridgetop winds light from the West. Check out the full synopsis here: https://avalanche.ca/weather/forecast

Avalanche Summary

No recent avalanche activity reported on Friday. With the winds recently switching directions, wind slabs may be reactive on a variety of aspects.

Snowpack Summary

Up to 20 cm of recent snow has buried a plethora of old snow surfaces which consists of wind scoured surfaces, old wind slabs, surface hoar up to 20 mm in sheltered terrain, and/or faceted old snow. Recent moderate winds from all directions is has redistributed some of this new snow on leeward slopes and behind terrain features. Deeper in the snowpack, the mid-December persistent weak facet layer has been more prominent and reactive in the Corbin area than areas closer to Fernie. The layer is generally considered dormant at the moment especially in deeper snowpack areas, but its status may change if we head into a warmer, wetter period next week.

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.