Avalanche forecast

Kananaskis

Feb 1 – 2, 2014Alberta Parks
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Archived · expired 13 years ago

Avalanche danger

Mon
Tue
Alpine
2 · Moderate
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
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Highlights

North facing sheltered areas at treeline will have the best chance for decent skiing. Travel is getting better, and the days are longer. Lengthier tours are seeming more realistic these days.

Avalanche problems

  • Wind Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Unlikely - Possible
    Size
    1–3
    We are seeing no natural activity on this layer. Forecasters still believe the problem exists in very steep, unsupported terrain at  upper treeline elevations.

  • Persistent Slabs

    • Alpine
    • Treeline
    • Below treeline
    Likelihood
    Unlikely - Possible
    Size
    3–6
    Depth hoar and facets still linger at the bottom of the snowpack. Caution in steep, thin areas. Especially if the area has not previously avalanched.

Confidence

Good

Weather Forecast

A similar day to today. Temps will come up a bit, but it will still be chilly in the morning. -15 is the morning low. There will be more cloud cover throughout the entire day as well. No significant snow.

Avalanche Summary

No new avalanches noted today

Snowpack Summary

Light winds in the alpine have started to move some of the surface snow. No sign of any significant windslabs yet. SE to SW aspects have a sun crust that will occasionally support a skier/rider. On non-solar aspects the surface snow is still loose. Classic dust on crust type skiing. The buried windslabs (and mid-pack in general) is faceting out with the cold temps. The loss of slab density is reducing the likelihood of the slabs propagating. No change in the quality of the basal layers. They are still weak. Treeline depths vary dramatically from area to area. Today's adventure was to Mt. Nestor where the average depth at treeline was 40 cm's.

Regions covered