Avalanche Forecast
Issued: Jan 17th, 2020 8:00AM
The alpine rating is , the treeline rating is , and the below treeline rating is Known problems include Wind Slabs and Persistent Slabs.
andrew jones,
Parks Canada
Watch for reactive slabs in wind-loaded areas.
Summary
Weather Forecast
Cloudy with sunny periods today and isolated flurries. Trace amounts of accumulation. The alpine high will be -15 with freezing levels staying in the valley bottom. Ridge winds SW 20-30 km/h. A small pulse of precipitation is expected on Saturday with another 5cm of new snow.
Snowpack Summary
Strong southerly winds have redistributed 15cm of new storm snow. Reactive wind slabs have formed in exposed areas above treeline. The Dec 27th surface hoar/ crust layer is buried approximately 100cm. The mid and lower snowpack are generally well settled and strong.
Avalanche Summary
Field teams on Mt Abbott and Avalanche Crest ski cut several size 1.5 avalanches in wind loaded areas, failing 15cm deep with good propagation. The "Frequent Flyer" avalanche path released naturally with a size 2.5 that overran the typical Connaught Creek uptrack. In the east end of the highway corridor, 4 size 2.5 and 2 size 3.0 Na were observed.
Confidence
Problems
Wind Slabs
Multiple field teams confirmed the presence of easily-triggered soft wind slabs in exposed areas at all elevations. With strong southerly winds overnight, expect this problem to persists today. These slabs can have larger than expected propagation.
- Watch for shooting cracks or stiffer feeling snow. Avoid areas that appear wind loaded.
- Be careful with wind loaded pockets, especially near ridge crests and roll-overs.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: All elevations.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Persistent Slabs
The December 27th surface hoar layer persists down approximately 100cm. This layer is becoming less reactive in stability tests and it is increasingly harder to find in snow profiles, but the potential is still there to get surprised.
- Avoid lingering in runout zones.
- Avoid steep convexities or areas with a thin or variable snowpack.
Aspects: All aspects.
Elevations: All elevations.
Likelihood
Expected Size
Valid until: Jan 18th, 2020 8:00AM
