Avalanche Forecast

High -

Friday night: no new snow expected. Low of -8 at 1900m and moderate northwest winds.

Saturday: sunny with light to moderate northwest winds. Freezing level rising to 2200m.

Sunday: sunny with light west winds. Freezing level rising to 2000m.

Monday: Light precipitation bringing trace amounts of snow at higher elevation. Light southwest winds and freezing levels rising to 1600m.

A few wet loose avalanches up to size two were observed on south facing terrain in the region as well as the neighboring Waterton National Park.

A new melt-freeze crust is expected on solar aspects into the alpine and all aspects at lower elevations. This crust will likely break down and become moist as the sun comes out and freezing levels rise. Ongoing periods of strong westerly winds have formed wind slabs and large cornices in exposed terrain at higher elevations. 

The January 30 interface is now typically down around 20cm and consists of a variety of forms including surface hoar, facets and a crust. It is generally only concerning in the north part of the region. The mid January crust is down 20 to 70 cm deep. In most of the region this crust may only be found on solar aspects. In heavily wind effected areas it may be found on the surface.

The early December crust/facet persistent weak layer is now 100-200 cm deep. This layer produced numerous very large avalanches in January but is now considered dormant. See this forecaster blog on how to manage this layer as it may come into play again later this season. 

• Be careful as you transition into wind affected terrain.
• Cornices become weak with daytime heating or solar exposure.
• Avoid steep slopes when air temperatures are warm, or solar radiation is strong.