Avalanche Forecast
Issued: Dec 5th, 2019 4:00PM
The alpine rating is , the treeline rating is , and the below treeline rating is Known problems include Storm Slabs.
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Avalanche Canada
Gather information as you approach avalanche terrain, there is uncertainty about how quickly storm snow is gaining strength.
Summary
Confidence
Moderate - Uncertainty is due to how the snowpack will react to the forecast weather.
Weather Forecast
THURSDAY NIGHT: Light flurries with up to 5 cm of snow, 40 km/h wind from the southwest, alpine temperatures around -3 C.
FRIDAY: Scattered flurries with 5-10 cm of new snow, 30-50 km/h wind from the southwest, alpine high temperatures around -3 C.
SATURDAY: Flurries continue with another 5-10 cm of snow, 40 km/h wind from the southwest, alpine high temperatures around -1 C.
SUNDAY: Cloudy in the morning then clearing in the afternoon, 40 km/h wind from the northwest, alpine high temperatures around -4 C.
Avalanche Summary
Recent snow and wind has formed slabs that will be most reactive in wind affected terrain. Several small (size 1) human triggered slab avalanches were reported on Tuesday and Wednesday. These slabs were between 10 to 30 cm thick and occurred on all aspects.
Snowpack Summary
The past few days delivered about 15-40 cm of snow, with the highest accumulations around Kootenay Pass. This snow has been blown around by southwest wind and sits above hard layers of wind pressed snow and crusts. There are reports of several layers 30-60 cm below the surface that could develop into avalanche problems in the future. These layers could be composed of facet/crust layers or surface hoar depending on aspect and elevation. While these layers have produced some notable results in snowpack tests, there are no reports of avalanches on these layers yet. Snowpack depths are about 120 cm at treeline and taper quickly below treeline.
Problems
Storm Slabs
Triggering storm slab avalanches remains a concern in steep and convex terrain, especially near ridgetops that have been loaded by blowing snow.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Valid until: Dec 6th, 2019 4:00PM
