Avalanche Forecast
Regions: Bow Valley, Highwood Pass, Kananaskis, North 40, Spray - KLakes.
The storm has slowly pushed back until Sunday night Monday. Enjoyable skiing or riding can be found on mellow slopes where the wind hasn't touched the snow.
Confidence
Moderate
Avalanche Summary
No new avalanches reported or observed today.
Snowpack Summary
Generally a weak snowpack. The surface wind slab at tree line and above is slowly gaining strength but is still producing planar results down 20cm from the surface. Natural avalanches are possible and the consequences would be significant because any trigger would likely make the entire snowpack slide.
Weather Summary
Cloudy with some sunny periods. Maybe a flurrie or two and day time highs of -11. Winds will be light out of the SouthWest.
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.
- Pay attention to cornices and give them a wide berth when traveling on or below ridges.
Avalanche Problems
Wind Slabs
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: Alpine, Treeline.
Likelihood: Possible - Likely
Expected Size: 1 - 2
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