Avalanche Forecast
Issued: Feb 18th, 2020 4:00PM
The alpine rating is , the treeline rating is , and the below treeline rating is Known problems include Wind Slabs and Deep Persistent Slabs.
William Lawson,
Parks Canada
Good conditions this week as the snowpack and the weather stabilizes. The sun is higher in late February, so be aware of the increased power of solar radiation on the snowpack. Don't climb under large sun exposed start-zones when the sky is clear.
Summary
Weather Forecast
A 10 to 15 fluctuation from evening lows to daytime highs is forecasted for the week. In the alpine this temperature swing is not as prevalent, an inversion will form over night and temps will stay steady at -6. Clear skies Wednesday and Thursday will bring increased solar inputs on Southerly aspects. Winds will remain light for Wednesday.
Snowpack Summary
Continued settlement and cool temperatures are slowly stabilizing the recently formed windslabs, which could still be triggered in steep, loaded areas in the alpine. Suspect sun crust formation on steep S and SW facing terrain. Overall the deep snowpack is strong in Little Yoho with no significant shear test results.
Avalanche Summary
No new avalanches were observed or reported on Tuesday.
Confidence
Problems
Wind Slabs
Recently formed windslabs are stabilizing but can still be triggered by people in steep leeward areas in the alpine. Cornices have grown very large in recent weeks, so watch your exposure to them carefully.
- If triggered the wind slabs may step down to deeper layers resulting in large avalanches.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: Alpine.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Deep Persistent Slabs
This problem is isolated to shallow snowpack areas in Little Yoho, such as Mt. Dennis or Mt. Stephen and we have not had a report of a large, deep avalanche in this area for some time.
- Pay attention to overhead hazards like cornices which could easily trigger the deep persistent slab.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: Alpine.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Valid until: Feb 19th, 2020 4:00PM
