Avalanche Forecast

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The arctic air mass dominates the region bringing the coldest temperatures of the season. Wednesday will see a mix of sun and cloud with alpine temperatures near -20 and ridgetop winds light from the East. Thursday will be slightly unstable with a mix of sun and cloud and flurries. Alpine temperatures near -22. The next low will move into the Interior Friday with periods of snow and alpine temperatures near -15. Ridgetop winds will increase with strong gusts.

No recent avalanche observations have been reported. New storm slabs may be touchy to rider triggers and loose dry sluffs from steeper slopes may have the potential to knock you off your feet, so watch for terrain traps below.

Up to 30 cm of recent storm snow has buried old snow surfaces including surface hoar hand old, stiff wind slabs. This new snow may have a poor bond to those underlying surfaces. Early season snowpack observations are still limited in the region but the threshold for avalanches has been exceeded at treeline and in the alpine. Kananaskis Country to the north and Waterton to the south of the region is currently reporting 30-50 cm of snow overlying the mid-November crust layer. Conditions are likely similar in the South Rockies.