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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 21st, 2020–Feb 22nd, 2020

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

Regions

Banff Yoho Kootenay.

Avoid terrain features that are/or have been wind loaded. Investigate snow depths as you travel through terrain and avoid committing yourself to shallow snowpack areas where the deep persistent layer could be triggered.

Weather Forecast

Expect to see anywhere from 2-10cm of new snow throughout the day on Saturday with the Western region getting the higher amount. The strong winds will gradually decrease becoming light from the SW by the evening. Temps will drop, with an alpine high of -15. Sunday into Monday will see another 10-15cm and light winds and slightly warmer temps.

Snowpack Summary

Continued snow transport and cornice growth today in the high alpine. Sun crust formation on steep solar facing terrain. Weak, facetted snow near the base of the snowpack persists in much of the range, producing isolated but large avalanches.

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanche observations or reports on Friday. On Thursday wind slabs were observed up to size 1.5 today along the Icefields Parkway in loaded pockets in the alpine.

A size 2.5 skier remote was reported Wednesday on the scramblers route of Cascade Mountain on a steep SW slope in the alpine, no involvement.

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.

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.