Avalog
Register
Get forecast notifications
Create an account to receive email notifications when forecasts are published.
Register
Login
Archived

Avalanche Forecast

Nov 15th, 2020–Nov 16th, 2020
Alpine
3: Considerable
The avalanche danger rating in the alpine will be considerable
Treeline
2: Moderate
The avalanche danger rating at treeline will be moderate
Below Treeline
1: Low
The avalanche danger rating below treeline will be low
Alpine
2: Moderate
The avalanche danger rating in the alpine will be moderate
Treeline
1: Low
The avalanche danger rating at treeline will be low
Below Treeline
1: Low
The avalanche danger rating below treeline will be low
Alpine
2: Moderate
The avalanche danger rating in the alpine will be moderate
Treeline
1: Low
The avalanche danger rating at treeline will be low
Below Treeline
1: Low
The avalanche danger rating below treeline will be low

Regions: Kananaskis.

A busy day today at Highwood Pass! Pretty much any ski-able terrain was heavily, heavily traveled. This inevitably forces people to look elsewhere for fresh turns. Be diligent with selecting un-skied terrain. 

Confidence

Moderate -

Weather Forecast

Steady temperatures around -8. Wind will fade a bit, dropping to 45km/hr from the west by tomorrow afternoon. No snow is forecasted, but don't be surprised if there are some local flurries rolling through the area.

Avalanche Summary

Some old(24 hours) avalanches were note today. They were sz1.5-2, east aspect and below alpine cliffs. 

Snowpack Summary

New snow on Saturday and Sunday has buried the Nov 5 crust under 45-50cm of snow at treeline. So far it appears to be bonding OK, but previously wind scoured/exposed crust patches might have a worse bond with the new storm snow. Basically, its worth spending some time investigating it at the start of the day. Of more interest today was a facet layer down 40cm. Its thought this was the exposed surface during the last warm spell. In snow tests we had repeatable failures(CTM12 SC) on this layer today. The winds today transported a LOT of snow and windslabs are building at all elevations.

Terrain and Travel

  • Avoid lee and cross-loaded slopes at and above treeline.
  • Avoid freshly wind loaded features, especially near ridge crests, roll-overs and in steep terrain.
  • Ice climbers should be equipped with avalanche safety gear.
  • Avoid terrain traps such as gullies and cliffs where the consequence of any avalanche could be serious.

Avalanche Problems

Wind Slabs

Winds today formed slabs in most open areas. These became more reactive as the day went on. Expect that trend to continue overnight and into tomorrow.

Aspects: North, North East, East, South East, South.

Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.

Likelihood: Likely - Very Likely

Expected Size: 1.5 - 2.5