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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 25th, 2020–Mar 26th, 2020

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

Regions

Jasper.

Further to the announcement of Parks Canada facility and service closures last week, as of March 25, 2020, Parks Canada will temporarily suspend motor vehicle access to non-essential roadways by visitors.

Weather Forecast

Cooling tonight with a good freeze to the surface layers of the snow. However a warming trend is underway over the next 4 days with limited below treeline snowopack recover as we enter the weekend. During the next 24hrs precipitation amounts will be modest but winds will be strong from the west in the alpine: Mountain weather forecast

Snowpack Summary

The mid snowpack is consolidating providing good bridging strength over the weak base. Sun and temperatures crusts laminate the upper snowpack. At treeline and above watch for thin windslabs over these crusts where bonding may be poor, particularly on solar facing slopes. Cornices loom large and are particularly capricious at this time of year.

Avalanche Summary

Recent activity has been limited  to very few point releases to size 1.5 from steep rocky terrain.  There is significant snow clinging to steep rock faces which when warmed by the sun will rapidly destabilize. Similarly cornices are large and should be considered a looming hazard at all times.

Confidence

Freezing levels are uncertain on Friday

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.

Deep Persistent Slabs

Deep Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a thick cohesive layer of hard snow (a slab), when the bond breaks between the slab and an underlying persistent weak layer deep in the snowpack. The most common persistent weak layers involved in deep, persistent slabs are depth hoar or facets surrounding a deeply buried crust. Deep Persistent Slabs are typically hard to trigger, are very destructive and dangerous due to the large mass of snow involved, and can persist for months once developed. They are often triggered from areas where the snow is shallow and weak, and are particularly difficult to forecast for and manage.