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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Jan 5th, 2025–Jan 6th, 2025

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

Regions

Purcells, Crawford, Dogtooth, East Purcell, Moyie, St. Mary, West Purcell.

Persistent weak layers remain a concern.

Avoid rocky, thin, and shallow areas where triggering slabs is most likely.

Confidence

Moderate

Avalanche Summary

On Sunday, evidence of a size 2 avalanche triggered by cornice failure was observed near Invermere.

On Saturday, a few size 1 loose dry avalanches were observed in steep rocky alpine terrain.

No persistent avalanches were reported throughout the weekend however professionals remain concerned about this layer. See this MIN from last week for an example of where this problem can be triggered.

If you head out in the backcountry, let us know what you see by submitting a MIN!

Snowpack Summary

2 to 10 cm of low-density snow sits atop a variety of surfaces, including surface hoar and facets on northerly aspects, a thin breakable sun crust on southerly aspects, and isolated wind slabs in the alpine. In sheltered areas, 20 to 75 cm of snow continues to settle.

A weak layer buried in early December can be found down 50 to 90 cm. On shaded slopes, it consists of weak surface hoar or faceted crystals, while on south-facing slopes, it combines a sun crust with facets.

The snowpack base is composed of a thick crust and facets in many areas.

Weather Summary

Sunday Night

Partly cloudy. 5 to 15 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C.

Monday

Mostly clear skies. 10 to 20 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -6 °C.

Tuesday

Mostly clear skies. 15 to 30 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -4 °C.

Wednesday

Partly cloudy, with light snow 0 to 2 cm. 20 to 40 km/h northwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -7 °C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • In times of uncertainty, conservative terrain choices are our best defense.
  • Avoid thin areas like rocky outcrops where you're most likely to trigger avalanches on deep weak layers.
  • Be careful with wind-loaded pockets, especially near ridge crests and rollovers.

Problems

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.

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.