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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 22nd, 2025–Mar 23rd, 2025

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

Regions

South Rockies, Akamina, Bull, Crowsnest North, Crowsnest South, Elkford East, Elkford West.

Avalanches are possible on steep, rocky, and wind-affected slopes due to wind slabs and buried weak layers.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

Observations are limited with a few size size 1 slab and loose avalanches reported on Friday.

Snowpack Summary

Most areas received 15 cm of new snow in the past few days, with 20+ cm in southern parts of the region near Castle Mountain and Waterton. This snow has likely formed wind slabs on lee aspects at treeline and above.

Approximately 40 to 50 cm of snow sits on a crust, except on high-elevation north and east-facing slopes.

A persistent weak layer of surface hoar or facets from late January is buried 50 to 100 cm deep. It is most likely to be triggered on steep, rocky, convex slopes on northerly and easterly aspects at treeline and above.

Weather Summary

Saturday Night

Mostly cloudy with 0 to 1 cm of snow. 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C.

Sunday

Cloudy with 0 to 1 cm of snow. 60 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C. Freezing level 1800 m.

Monday

Cloudy with 5 cm of snow switching to rain in the afternoon. 60 km/h southwest ridgetop winds. Treeline temperature 0 °C. Freezing level 2400 m.

Tuesday

Cloudy with 5 to 10 mm of rain and partly clearing skies in the afternoon. 30 km/h southwest ridgetop winds. Treeline temperature +3 °C. Freezing level 2600 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Avoid steep, rocky, and wind-affected areas where triggering slabs is more likely.
  • Watch for newly formed and reactive wind slabs as you transition into wind-affected terrain.
  • Use small, low consequence slopes to test the bond of the new snow.

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.

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.