Avalanche Forecast
Issued: Jan 8th, 2020 4:11PM
The alpine rating is , the treeline rating is , and the below treeline rating is Known problems include Wind Slabs, Deep Persistent Slabs and Loose Dry.
Benjamin Firth,
Parks Canada
Probably going to be another great day at the ski hill. Avoiding avalanche terrain is advised.
Summary
Weather Forecast
Skies will continue to clear and temperatures will drop into Thursday with light winds from the northwest. Friday winds will shift to come from the west and temperatures will gradually warm into the weekend. No precipitation is forecasted for this time period.
Visit CAA's Mountain Weather Forecast for more specific details.
Snowpack Summary
A total of 65cm of storm snow since January 1st. Wind effect and slab formation on lee aspects in the alpine and treeline. This overlies buried surface hoar up to 2200m in sheltered areas as well as buried wind slabs on lee features at treeline and above. Well consolidated midpack. The bottom of the snowpack consists of depth hoar and facets
Avalanche Summary
Widespread avalanche cycle night of January 7th through January 8th up to size 3 on all aspects and elevations. Consisting of wind slab, dry loose and failing at ground
Confidence
Problems
Wind Slabs
Wind loading has reached critical mass and we are seeing many avalanches on wind loaded features at all elevations and aspects. Expect this to continue Thursday.
- Avoid exposure to overhead avalanche terrain, large avalanches may reach the end of run out zones.
- If triggered the wind slabs may step down to deeper layers resulting in large avalanches.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: All elevations.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Deep Persistent Slabs
On Wednesday numerous avalanches were observed throughout the region that failed to ground
- Use caution on open slopes and convex rolls
- Be aware of thin areas that may propogate to deeper instabilites.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: All elevations.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Loose Dry
Caution in steep gullies and terrain traps where a small sluff could have large consequences. Avoid terrain where this problem can initiate slab avalanches on deeper layers.
- Watch for terrain traps where small amounts of snow will acumulate into deep deposits.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: All elevations.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Valid until: Jan 9th, 2020 4:00PM
