Avalanche Forecast
Regions: Bow Valley, Highwood Pass, Kananaskis, North 40, Spray - KLakes.
Good skiing can still be found in sheltered areas. Generally a weak snowpack, approach all larger features with caution.
Confidence
Moderate
Avalanche Summary
One size 1.5 avalanche that was triggered by a cornice was seen in the Burstall Pass area. Keep in mind that there have been several large natural avlanches in the area within the last 3 days.
Snowpack Summary
The forecasting crew were out in the Burstall Pass area and found good skiing in sheltered areas in the trees. Wind slabs were recently producing easy sheers within the top 25cm. The lower half of the snowpack is made up of facets and depth hoar and on average can be found up to 50-70cm thick from the ground up. The interface with the top of this facet layer and the November surface hoar layer are still producing moderate to hard test results which are planar in nature. These weaknesses will persist for the rest of the season. Forecasters have been avoiding all large open planar slopes at tree line and above.
Weather Summary
Wednesday will be another day of sun and cloud. The morning will be chilly at around -22c and warm up to -10c. winds are expected to be light from East.
More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.
Terrain and Travel Advice
- Be aware of the potential for surprisingly large avalanches due to deeply buried weak layers.
- Avoid shallow, rocky areas where the snowpack transitions from thick to thin.
Avalanche Problems
Wind Slabs
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.
Likelihood: Likely
Expected Size: 1 - 2.5
Deep Persistent Slabs
The alpine is still variable in total amounts of snow but the basal layers haven't changed. The entire lower half is either facets, or depth hoar. Thin weak areas should be treated as suspect and avoided.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.
Likelihood: Possible
Expected Size: 2 - 3.5