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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Mar 28th, 2022–Mar 29th, 2022

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

Regions

Purcells.

Despite a decent overnight refreeze, solars aspects slopes will soften quickly with intense sunshine and warming temperatures. Be particularly cautious on and under steep slopes when they are baking in the sun.

Confidence

High - We have a good understanding of the snowpack structure and confidence in the weather forecast

Weather Forecast

A ridge of high pressure will build in for Tuesday, bringing a sunny and dry day with freezing levels up to 2000 to 2500 metres. 

MONDAY NIGHT: Cloudy with clear periods and isolated flurries. Trace of precipitation. 20-30 km/h northwesterly winds. Low alpine temperature -5 C with freezing level at valley bottom.

TUESDAY: A mix of sun and cloud. No precipitation. 10-20 km/h northerly winds. High alpine temperature +2 C with freezing level around 2000 m.

WEDNESDAY: Mainly cloudy with isolated flurries. 2-3 cm. 20-40 km/h southwesterly winds. High alpine temperature -2 C with freezing level at 1800 m.

THURSDAY: A mix of sun and cloud with isolated flurries. 1-3 cm. 20-25 km/h westerly winds. High alpine temperature -5 C with freezing level at 1500 m.

Avalanche Summary

On Sunday, several natural and triggered loose wet avalanches up to size 2 have been observed on all aspects. A few persistent slab avalanches size 2 triggered with explosives were reported on southerly aspects.

Snowpack Summary

Recent snow and moderate wind have formed small pockets of windslab in the alpine. Refrozen crust on all aspects as high as 2300 m, softening in the afternoon at all elevations, and on steep, sunny slopes. Recent warm temperatures, sun, and rain have made the top 5-15 cm of the snowpack moist. At very low elevations, the snowpack may be wet and isothermal, depending on overnight freezing levels. 

30 to 75 cm below the snow surface, you'll find a frozen sun crust on solar aspects. This layer was buried in early March and produced several avalanches last week. The recent warm weather seems to have helped this layer heal. 

The lower snowpack is generally strong and well bonded.

Terrain and Travel

  • Be alert to conditions that change with elevation and sun exposure.
  • When a thick, melt-freeze surface crust is present, avalanche activity is unlikely.
  • As surface loses cohesion due to melting, loose wet avalanches become common in steeper terrain.
  • Minimize exposure to sun-exposed slopes when the solar radiation is strong.

Problems

Loose Wet

Loose Wet avalanches are the release of wet unconsolidated snow or slush. These avalanches typically occur within layers of wet snow near the surface of the snowpack, but they may quickly gouge into lower snowpack layers. Like Loose Dry Avalanches, they start at a point and entrain snow as they move downhill, forming a fan-shaped avalanche. Other names for loose-wet avalanches include point-release avalanches or sluffs. Loose Wet avalanches can trigger slab avalanches that break into deeper snow layers.