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 unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.
Regions
Jasper.
Over 100cm of snow has fallen in the Ice Fields region since Dec 11th. We continue to see wide spread avalanche activity throughout the backcountry. This is the time to be on high alert when traveling in any avalanche terrain.
Weather Forecast
A cooling trend has taken into affect as the recent storm moved out. Temperatures will gradually warm up through the weekend with alpine highs around -10°c. The sky will be generally a mix of sun and cloud with no precipitation in the near future. Moderate west winds forecasted A detailed mountain weather forecast is available from Avalanche Canada.
Snowpack Summary
Moderate to strong south west winds continue to load lee slopes at tree line and above creating firm windslabs. The Dec. 11th persistent weak layer (facets, crust and isolated surface hoar) has been buried by up to 100cm snow producing sudden results in test profiles. The deep persistent weakness lingers near the ground.
Avalanche Summary
Avalanche control in the Columbia Ice Fields region produced numerous results to size 2.5 triggering both windslabs and persistent slabs at alpine and treeline elevations. A natural avalanche cycle was noted with several large releases to size 3.5. The peak of this natural avalanche cycle seemed to occur during the storm Thursday night.
Confidence
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.
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.